Scar Tissue
by CharLots
Summary: After a terrible battle in which Sasuke saves Naruto's life, the two are brought back to Konoha, barely alive. But even as their bodies heal, they find out there are some wounds no amount of chakra can mend. A/U SasuSaku, NaruHina
1. The room

It always amazed him that after the storm, after such hard, grueling battles where chakra was molded into towering weapons of destruction, it always ended up in silence, and in the white-washed rooms of the hospital.

The blood had been wiped from the skin, the dirt and the grime and the dust had been sluiced away, the steel of the weapons had been dislodged from the flesh, and the veins had been mended. There had been tubes, bristling needles, called-out orders, and agonizing hours of waiting on the other side of the door. But now this too had been cast away, and all that was left were two bodies, breathing quietly, gently lain out between a tender mattress and pure, crisp sheets.

There was still the faint scent of sickness, of death, in a recess of the air. But as days passed, it grew fainter, and the lungs kept breathing, in and out, in and out, even if the eyes stayed closed.

He came every day, not out of devotion or concern for his former students (this was not the time for concern anymore, and if they had to die, they would've done so already) but simply because he felt it was his place to do so. There was a nook here – a chair, green and sturdy, where he always sat down – and it was his to spend an hour in. Reading, thinking, asking the medics a few simple questions.

He was a man of routine, quiet and undemanding, at least when his missions allowed him to be. When they would both be out of the hospital, he would easily find another way to occupy his time. That was what he liked so much about books – as long as you had one handy, you were never bored.

The habit of filling up his time had come to him rather late. With Obito and Rin gone, there wasn't enough training in the world that could have distracted him. When he wasn't fighting, he was reading. When he was doing neither, there was a good chance he was asleep.

But he could feel himself getting older. He didn't mind letting his mind wander so much as before. His students had made the difference, he supposed – they had grounded him, made him alert. And then… well, and then things had gotten so bad there wasn't much time for anything else than helping them not to get killed, at any rate.

_I guess that makes my teaching somewhat of a success,_ he thought to himself, leaning back on the chair. After all, all three of them were alive. Battered, wounded and drained, but alive.

**********************************

_Rocks and grass digging into his knees. Metal digging into his skin. The sun shining brightly overhead, making the smell and color so vivid it felt like it was sinking down into his stomach like sludge._

_There had been others. Dozens of others. Blood flowing. It was of no importance. This was no different._

_The sky was blue, blue were the eyes looking up at him._

_There came a fresh splatter of red from between the split lips, in a sickening gurgle, and he understood that one more blow would be enough to kill his opponent._

_Words. He frowned. A name. _

Itachi.

_Go on, the others urged. Go on and do it. Win this battle. Win this war. With the host dead, there will be no stopping us._

_Red blood, everywhere. Torn orange cloth sodden with it. He was waiting – waiting for the red chakra, the red and fiery chakra of the demon to pour forth, to annihilate them, to save the host even it killed him._

_But nothing came. The horrifying grin of the nine-tailed fox did not appear._

_Naruto was dying, but he was smiling._

*************************************

And together, for the first time in seven years. Although two of them were still unconscious, that had to count for something.

"Oh, Kakashi-sensei, I didn't know you were visiting."

Kakashi looked up to see Sakura standing on the threshold of the room. "I come here every day after lunch," he said. "I don't usually see you here at this hour."

Sakura gave him a little smile. He noticed that her arm was no longer in a sling. _Healing from a triple fracture and poisonous gangrene in two weeks, _he thought._ She's well on the way of matching Tsunade._

"Well, I usually come a bit later, but Tsunade-sama gave me some free time, so…" She blushed slightly. "Still no improvement?"

Kakashi shrugged. "It'll take time – nothing much to do about it. Naruto is showing some signs of waking up, though – he almost mumbled the other day, or so I've been told."

Sakura sighed. "Well, I thought I would freshen up the flowers in the room," she said, putting a new batch in the vase adorning a small table in the corner and throwing out the old ones. "Soon everyone will be well enough to come visit them, it'll get crowded in here."

"I don't think that's a very good idea," Kakashi said evenly. "Sasuke, especially, needs time before – ah – jumping back into the action."

Sakura visibly tensed. Kakashi noticed that she was pointedly avoiding his gaze.

"I'll make sure they're not bothered, Kakashi-sensei," she replied, turning back around and heading towards the door again.

"You're going to have to stop calling me sensei soon," he said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood. "Remember, the jonin exams aren't so far away, and then you'll be a sensei as well."

"Whatever you say, Kakashi-sempai."

They both laughed. Kakashi hoped the prospect of the jonin exams would be enough to give Sakura heart, but as she walked out, there was still a indelible trace of sadness in her bright green eyes.

Kakashi sighed. Even when they did wake up, troubles were far from being over. But for now, he would sit in his chair, and stay where he belonged. Wherever he was, he never had anywhere else to go.

******************************

_You think I should fight back, don't you? You think I should use that damned Kyuubi to kill you and those others… But… a man who kills his best friend is already dead anyway._

_A cough. More red. _

_I had – had to tell you, before you let those others finish me off… Itachi. _

_Red eyes, boring into the back of his memory. A man who kills his brother, he thought, is worse than dead. _

_Itachi… did he tell you… about Madara. Madara let the nine-tailed beast lose. The Uchihas… he wanted… the clan… all dead. He knew they would send Itachi… He did it because… because…_

_Naruto's shaking hand, waving towards his face. His eyes. Red, like Itachi's, and carrying a small part of his brother inside of them._

_The last Uchiha… he would have them all, wouldn't he?_

_And then sky toppled. _

_Wake up, Sasuke. Wake up. Get up. Fight, and save his life. Fight with Itachi's eyes, and his heart. _

_Wake up. _


	2. The promise

Author's note : Thanks to those who reviewed and/or added me to their Story Alerts. I'm very glad you liked the beginning of the story. A couple of things you should know:

- there are spoilers for the manga and the anime in the story.

- I prefer doing short updates often than lengthy chapters at a longer interval. And I always write a few chapters in advance, just so you know :)

Now on to Chapter 2.

**********************************

"Sa… Sasuke…"

At first the only thing he could feel was his heart pounding – engulfing his entire body, it seemed. There was nothing else but the pulse, and the pain – in his throat, his ears, his head, his members.

He wasn't dead. It hurt too much to breathe. The realization struck him like a crushing weight, and almost immediately he started to panic.

_Sasuke._

The eyes were the last thing he remembered – red and angry, boring into him… Was that his real memory, or a memory of a past battle? Long ago, at the waterfall…

Sasuke was going to kill him. Then if he, Naruto, was still alive, that meant…

"Sasuke," he whimpered again, and it seemed to him that his voice was coming from another body than his.

He had to get up – he had to get going… somewhere… find Sasuke… He pushed himself up on his arms, but almost instantly his head spun sickeningly and he fell back down on the pillow, exhausted. He had never felt so weak – so pinned down by his own broken body…

"Naruto!"

With tremendous effort, he opened his eyes again. Green, and pink, and a smile…

"Oh my goodness, you're awake… You're awake!" There was a blur, and some voices. "Nurse, Naruto just woke up. His eyes are open and… he's trying to say something."

"Sa – Sakura…"

He felt a hand in his, a squeeze. "Yes, Naruto, it's me. I'm right here. Nurse! Quickly, prepare the shot…"

_A shot? I hate shots,_ he thought. And that's when he knew he had really come back to reality. There was a sting, then darkness, again.

*************************************

When he woke up for the second time, his mind felt much clearer, as if a veil was had been lifted from his perception while he slept. Sakura was still there. She had dozed off in a chair next to his bed. From the look and sound of things, it felt like the middle of the night. Then again, he had no idea how long he'd been out – time had gone on without him for an undefined period. So many things could have happened, if he was back in Konoha, and treated in the ward…

He made another fruitless attempt at sitting up. Falling back on the pillow, he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and tossed his head impatiently in the other direction.

A young man with dark hair was lying in the bed next to his.

For the fragment of a moment, Naruto was persuaded that he was dead, and that someone had simply forgotten to pull the sheet over him. But then the hospital fell back into place in his consciousness – they didn't put dead people in hospitals. And Sakura… she wouldn't be sleeping so soundly if…

"Sasuke!"

"Uh? Oh goodness, Naruto, you startled me..." Sakura stretched her arms and rubbed her neck. "Feeling better? I gave you some medicine to make things less foggy…"

"Me? Yes… yes, I suppose, but… is that…?" He looked at her in awe. "Who brought him back, Sakura? Why is he here? You see him too, don't you?"

Sakura gave him a weary smile. "Yeah… Sasuke. He's here. Still unconscious, though."

"What happened? Sakura, you have to tell me…"

She held him back, stroking his shoulders soothingly. "Don't get upset, Naruto, you still have to rest…"

"Upset? What are you talking about? This is – this is incredible!" In spite of his wretched state, he felt like jumping up on his bed and cheering so loud that the entire village would hear. "Sakura, we did it!"

"You did it," she said warmly, but there was a hint of anguish in her voice. "You alone."

He paused for a moment, digging into his memories. There were blurry bits and pieces – he was in a field, on the ground, with the sky blue and cloudless above… The smell was horrible… And Sasuke hadn't been the only one there…

"Did I manage to tell him? The truth, I mean?"

"It seems so. I can't see any other reason why…" She fell silent and covered her mouth with her hand. Naruto realized she was about to cry. "… why he would save your life."

_Sasuke saved my life._ Naruto repeated the sentence in his mind, testing the words for truthfulness, weighing each one against his own intuition.

_To me, you have become my closest friend. _

These words had kept him going for so long… And now they finally made sense again. He felt such an overwhelming sweep of relief that he started to weep.

Sakura leaned over him and ever so gently, took him in her arms.

"You know what that means," Naruto whispered. "That means I kept my promise to you, Sakura. I finally kept my promise."

"Oh, Naruto!"

She held him tightly against her, still sobbing. Once her tears had subsided, she sat up again, wiping the wetness from her cheeks with the back of her hand.

"Kakashi-sensei will come visit tomorrow morning – I sent him message that you were awake."

"That means he'll come by around noon," Naruto said, laughing through his tears and wincing slightly at the pain it caused to his ribs. "I'm glad to hear he's all right."

"He's going to fill you in on what happened. I wasn't on the scene so…" She smiled at him again. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait a bit longer to know all the details."

"It doesn't matter – I can wait," he assured her, glancing at Sasuke every now and then as if to make sure he wouldn't disappear. It was still so hard to believe it was him, a few feet away…

"So how are the others? They're all okay, right?"

"Everyone came back to Konoha, yes," Sakura said in a strange voice. "A lot of us had to be patched up and take some time to recover – Lee could barely move a muscle for a week, and Hinata got a terrible injury… But we're all okay now. For the most part."

"Sakura… you're not telling me everything. I want to know, whatever it is."

She bit her lip. "Choji was hurt. Badly. That's been the worse, honestly. We didn't know if he would make it."

Naruto looked down at the sheets. He imagined Lee giving his all and making a show out of it even if all his strength was gone… Kiba risking the life of his most precious friend to attack the enemy… Shikamaru catching his breath and devising a plan against all odds… And Hinata, so gentle and shy, throwing herself into the fray and battling with all her might, until she was stricken down…

_Choji._ He was so tough, so determined. Over the past few years his abilities had grown to the point where lesser opponents looked like waves smashing against a rock. How did this happen?

"They were stronger than us," he said, already forcing his heart to accept the truth. "Much stronger."

"Most of them are dead," Sakura said. "It's over and done for Akatsuki and Hawk. Sasuke made sure of that – he eliminated the last ones standing."

"But the war isn't over, is it?"

Sakura shook her head slowly. "Madara got away."

Naruto closed his eyes and let out a slow, deep breathe. The task at hand was huge, but…

"The fight's never really over when you're a ninja," he said. "And now that Sasuke's back, we'll become an invincible team again. No one will be able to stop us!"

Sakura gave him an affectionate look and pushed back his hair from his forehead. "You should rest some more."

Naruto gave a big yawn. "You're right, Sakura-chan. There'll be plenty of time to talk about it tomorrow."

She nodded, but it seemed to Naruto there was still something troubling her deeply. Whatever it was, he told himself, settling back into the mattress, he'd have to make sure and find out.


	3. The turn

For what seemed like the hundredth time, Sakura read the same sentence again, but she couldn't seem to make any sense out of it. She looked up from the book and sighed with frustration, rolling her hands into fists. She'd been less than useless to Tsunade-sama lately – every task that was demanded of her took twice the time it should have. And just because Madara had gone into hiding for now, it was no excuse to slack off.

"I'll have to try harder," she told herself, not really believing it. For in the back of her mind there was something that bore no indifference, and that kept her constantly alert, as if she was about to undergo the attack of a hidden enemy.

This made no sense at all, really, Sakura thought. They had won this battle, if not the war. And out of Team 7, Team 10 and Team Gai, Choji was the only one who would never heal from the damage he'd been inflicted, although she and Tsunade-sama had worked hard to come up with a solution. And Naruto had finally woken up – that was a source of great comfort, too.

But as happy as she was to see her teammate safe and sound, it had also brought to her mind the chilling realization that Sasuke would eventually end up regaining consciousness as well.

Her heart lurched forward against her chest, and Sakura had to turn away from the table. Her mind was assaulted with questions she had asked herself a thousand times without getting any closer to the answer. How would he react? What would he say to them – to her? How were they supposed to know that he'd really given up on his revenge, that this wasn't just another part of his plan?

_Don't be silly_, she berated herself. He wouldn't have fought against his own accomplices to save Naruto just to betray them again afterwards… Although the only source of information she had concerning that part of the story so far was Neji, and he was already half-unconscious himself when he'd witnessed the scene from afar, using every last drop of energy he had left in his Byakugan.

_I thought Naruto was done for, they were surrounding him… They didn't even pay any attention to the rest of us, whether we lived or died, they just wanted him… And then Sasuke came forward, as if he was going to give him the final blow – but Naruto said something… He raised his hand towards his face…_

Sakura shook her head. This didn't make any difference. The problem was intact: she was completely lost as to how to react to Sasuke's return.

She'd dreamed about it without respite these past seven years – hoped for it with all her heart, and fought for it with all the strength she could summon… Yet now that it was finally done, once the overwhelming feeling of relief had subsided, she found what she felt was not joy or gratefulness, but fear. And deep inside herself, anger.

Of course, she couldn't explain this to Naruto – he'd been so earnest and brave and unflinching in his promise to her that he wouldn't understand why she wasn't as happy as he was that their friend was back. His capacity to restore his own faith in those he loved and forgive them, whatever their failings, was even more incredible that his regeneration powers. But while it was easy to worry herself sick over Sasuke while he was lying pale and motionless in a hospital bed, with every passing day it became harder to ignore that he would soon stand in front of her.

It was so tempting to believe that he was the same person who had once been a part of their team when he was simply sleeping, breathing softly, his dark hair falling on his forehead. Sakura would have given anything for it to be true, even if it meant being rejected again, pushed away, treated as an annoying little girl. That she knew how to handle.

But Sasuke wasn't the same at all. He was powerful and dangerous, and he could hurt them again. For all the difference it made to her, he may as well be a complete stranger. Once he woke up, it would become all the more clear.

Feeling slightly sick, Sakura resolved to get him out of her head and get back to work. But as soon as she turned back to the book she knew it would be even more painstaking than before.

"Sakura, are you all right?"

With a small gasp, Sakura realized Tsunade-sama was standing in the doorway, and must have been observing her while she was lost in her thoughts.

"I'm fine, Tsunade-sama, I just… I was just thinking about something. I'll get back to work immediately."

The Hokage gave her a little smile. "I understand why you're not quite all there. We must always do our best not to let events stray us from our work, but sometimes you simply can't help it. We are only human, after all," she added, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, but it's not good getting worked up over something if you're helpless," Sakura said humbly. "I'm just wasting time."

"Are you really that helpless, Sakura? If you were helpless I wouldn't have taken you as my assistant."

Sakura nodded, humbled. Every since Shizune's tragic death at the hands of Pein, she'd been the one helping the Hokage with her work, which also enabled her to keep training. Tsunade-sama trusted her, and she had to stay worthy of that trust.

"Anyway," the Hokage continued, "I came here to tell you Ino's here – again. I'll leave it to you this time. Try to ease her mind as best you can."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama."

Sakura left the room and hurried down to the ground floor, where Ino was waiting, leaning against a wall, her blond hair concealing part of her face.

"Ino-chan!"

Ino turned towards her with a tight smile. _How the war hardened us all,_ Sakura thought bitterly. She remembered the combative, cheeky girl Ino used to be, and how in spite of it all she always had a carefree air about her. But it was no longer the case: Ino had grown more serious, more subdued, though she sometimes hid it under sassy remarks. Sakura noticed dark rings under her eyes as well – Ino must have been sleeping as badly as she had lately.

"Hey, Sakura – I just wanted to know if… well…" She bit her lip. "Do you want to go get a bite to eat?"

"Right now?"

Ino shrugged. "It's almost one o'clock. And besides, I think the Hokage is tired of seeing me around here all the time," she added with a forced little laugh.

The two of them bought some take-out ramen and sat down on the ledge of a wall, not far from the academy.

"So, any progress on… you know," Ino asked after they had exchanged the usual niceties.

"Oh, definitely," Sakura said confidently. Ino asked for updates almost every day, and she was glad to finally be able to give her some good news. "This is really one of Tsunade-sama's masterpieces, you'll see. It's made of this special material, and Choji will be able to control it with his chakra." She cleared her throat. "Of course, it'll be a bit draining, and we don't know if he'll be able to magnify it like he does with his real members, but…"

She stopped, realizing there were tears filling Ino's eyes.

"Ino… please, don't cry," she said, her throat tightening. "Choji is getting stronger every day, soon we'll be able to fit him with…"

"I know," Ino interrupted suddenly, blinking her tears back impatiently. "I know. I just wish Shikamaru hadn't gone away with that diplomatic mission to negotiate a permanent alliance with Sand – they could've damn well picked someone else."

"I think there's a good reason why they chose him," Sakura remarked slyly. "The Kazekage's big sister might have some influence in the decision."

Ino scowled. "Well, I'm thrilled he's getting an occasion to score, but the result is I pretty much spend my days alone."

"I'm here," Sakura pointed out, nudging her with her shoulder. "I know I'm a poor sparring partner, but if you want to get together to train after I'm done with my work…"

Ino gave her a grin. For a moment, she looked like her old self again. "You're on, Haruno."

The two young women finished their ramen in silence, then took a stroll down the main street.

"So, have you decided to take the jonin exams?" Sakura ventured. This was a touchy subject with Ino, but if she wanted to train, perhaps she had made up her mind. The jonin exams had been put on hold after the destruction of Konoha, and then their mission had kept the nine eldest chunins away from the village for months. Now was finally the time for things to start running their course again.

"I'm not entirely sure," Ino said, trying to sound uninterested, and carefully avoiding her friend's gaze. "Shikamaru and I haven't settled on anything yet…"

"Listen, even if Choji has to wait one more year before passing them, you two could always -"

"Sakura."

She halted, surprised. Ino had stopped walking and was looking straight at her. Sakura didn't think she'd ever seen her looking so resigned.

"You and I both know Choji will never pass the jonin exam. Not with one arm missing."

Both of them remained silent as they resumed their walk. There was nothing much to say, but at least they could take a bit of comfort from each other's company, and pretend that this was a sunny afternoon like any other.


	4. The poppies

Author's note: Thanks again to all those who took the time to post reviews, it's a real pleasure for me to read them after I post my chapter. Some of you may be impatient for some SasuSaku and NaruHina interaction, but I promise it'll come soon. I just like to take my time setting up the characters' mindset first.

Also, I'm working on a companion story to this one which will be Kakashi-centric and should be posted soon.

*********************************

Spring was slowly turning into summer, as if it was too lazy to get a move on, and just let itself melt at a low heat. These were the most pleasant mornings – the air was still fresh, but didn't even give you a chill. Just a pleasant coolness, passing over the skin like silk. Hinata smiled and closed her eyes, breathing deeply as she opened the screen on the garden adjacent to her room.

The courtyard was quiet and deserted as she hurried away towards the road. She was glad no one had caught sight of her – it was her only day off in the week and her father might insist she spend it with her family, helping Hanabi practice. But there were enough straw dummies in the Hyuuga dojo for that already, Hinata thought, walking a little bit quicker.

In stark contrast to the Hyuuga domain, the main street of Konoha was buzzing with activity. Hinata couldn't help but cast a furtive glance inside Ichiraku's, even though it was much too early for anyone to be eating there. It was almost a reflex now, she realized, blushing. One day, she vowed, she would be able to pass in front of it without turning her head.

Her steps naturally led her to a small block of flats a little further away; she knew the way so well she didn't even pay attention to where she was going anymore. She was free to let her mind wander and think about the upcoming weeks. The young pupils of the academy would soon have two weeks' vacation, which left her free to… to do what, exactly? She had considered the possibilities but none of them seemed entirely valid.

Which was why she was headed to Kurenai's place – it was always pleasant to have tea there and get some solid, thought-out advice. And see Sumei, of course – he seemed to be getting taller every time she saw him, though scarcely a week went by without her visiting the one she still fully considered to be her sensei.

When she arrived, Hinata looked up to see the older women watering the flowers on her balcony. Poppies, of course – she grew them by the dozen, and they formed a beautiful red crown all around the banister, even in winter.

"Kurenai-sempai," she called out, waving. "Good morning!"

"Oh, Hinata, what a pleasant surprise. Come on up!"

Sumei greeted her at the threshold of the apartment with a tight hug. The top of his head was level with her hips now. Hinata laughed and raked her hand through the little boy's thick, dark hair.

"Look, Hina-chan, Mommy is letting me grow my own plant!" he said, taking her by the hand and dragging her inside.

"That's wonderful, Sumei-chan," she replied. "Are you growing a poppy too?"

"No, flowers are for girls! I'm growing a cactus!"

Hinata crouched down to his level and admired the small, round cactus encased in a terracotta pot. "I hear cactuses only grow in the Land of Wind," she said. "This must be a very special plant indeed."

"Sumei, leave Hinata alone," Kurenai said gently, entering the room with a teapot and two cups. "Besides, that cactus isn't going to grow any faster if you sit there and stare at it all day."

"I'll make it grow with my chakra!"

"I think you had better use all the chakra you have to clean your room first, because it's a horrible mess. Now run along."

Sulking, Sumei left the living room, but insisted on taking his cactus with him.

"I can't believe he'll be entering the academy next year. It seems only yesterday he was learning how to walk."

"Maybe he'll be under your care," Kurenai said, pouring the tea. "I couldn't think of a better way for him to start his ninja training."

Hinata blushed, flattered by the compliment. But it was well deserved, if anything, Kurenai thought. Hinata had been working for almost a year the academy now, and she was in charge of the youngest age group. She was naturally gifted for such a job, as Kurenai had expected – in fact, she had been the one to recommend her to the academy in the first place. Her gentleness and composure made her strong where more powerful ninjas who weren't blessed with such everlasting forbearance quickly broke down and quit. It was something to fight dangerous foes, and quite another to keep twenty kids under your control for hours on end. Hinata could also visualize the children's chakra with her Byakugan and help them gain better control of it by seeing where the flow was shaky or irregular.

"You're too kind, Kurenai-sempai," she replied. "But I would love to have Sumei in class. I'm sure it'll be no trouble for him, considering who his parents are. I mean…"

Hinata bit her lip. Perhaps mentioning Asuma-sensei wasn't a good idea. But Kurenai simply gave her a warm smile.

"I'm sure he'll live up to Asuma's name," she said. "He's already trying hard, as you can see."

Hinata laughed. "Cleaning his room, you mean?"

Kurenai laughed in turn and handed her a cup. "I'm glad too see you're feeling better. I was a bit worried for you when you came back."

"Oh, it was nothing that terrible, really," Hinata said. "Nothing Sakura couldn't handle anyway. The scar will probably stay, but… it could've been worse. For all of us."

Kurenai nodded. All things considering, it could've been much worse. "I hear they fitted Choji with his new arm this week. Is it holding out well?"

"Yes, they're seem hopeful that his body will adjust. Choji's still a bit – well, it's a bit hard for him to get used to the idea. But he'll be out of the hospital in a couple of weeks, I think…"

Kurenai noticed Hinata's face reddening again, and the young woman shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Speaking of which, I heard Naruto left the hospital yesterday…"

"Ouch!"

Hinata had spilled a drop of hot tea on her hand. She put it back on the saucer with a shaky clink.

"Yes, um – I know. He wasn't there when… I mean, I went to visit Choji-kun with Kiba and Shino, and I thought, well, as long as I'm here, I could…"

"You don't need an excuse to visit a sick friend, you know," Kurenai pointed out.

"I didn't want to be a bother," Hinata said quickly. "He must have gotten so many visits…"

"And I don't see why one of them couldn't have been you," Kurenai said gently. "Hinata… let me tell you something. There isn't a day that goes by where I don't wish I could've said one last goodbye to Asuma before he left, and told him I loved him."

Hinata was flustered. She hadn't been expecting this sort of declaration at all. And how did Kurenai even know that she… Well, that she was…

"I wasn't born yesterday, you know," her sensei said, as if she was reading her mind plain as day. "It's been quite obvious from the start that what you don't feel for Naruto the way you do for your friends."

Hinata thought she would die of embarrassment then and there. Her cheeks were burning so badly she suspected she was even redder than the poppies.

"You've grown so much in the past year – and you're such a lovely young woman. It's a shame you still see yourself as the little genin that cowered from her own teammates… You're brave, Hinata, and you fought as hard as the rest. You have the scar to prove it, don't you?"

Kurenai's smile had disappeared and she was looking at her intently. Hinata had seldom known Kurenai to grow so serious so fast.

"Now don't tell me that someone who fought against Akatsuki is still afraid of showing a little affection towards a young man who probably doesn't know the first thing about girls?"

"No, it's not that…"

"Then what is it?" Kurenai asked, raising an eyebrow. "Hinata, soon Naruto will be a jonin – with his abilities I wouldn't be surprised if he landed in ANBU. He'll be risking his life everyday. How do you think you'll feel if one day he gets killed, and you never got a chance to tell him you love him?"

Hinata was shocked. Kurenai's words were bringing back such terrible memories… When the final battle had brought them head to head with Hawk and what was left of the Akatsuki, headed by Madara Uchiha, she'd been wounded badly and sent to the back line, where Sakura and Ino were doing their best to heal those who were hurt. Some had to be sent back to Konoha urgently – Choji couldn't have survived more than a day or two in the forest… They had regrouped quickly and briefly, deciding a single team would be their best chance at getting rid of the five enemies left standing. Naruto, Neji, Lee, and Shikamaru, under the command of Kakashi-sensei, had been the obvious choice.

Hinata had cried bitterly on the eve of the battle. Naruto was the only one who could still reach out to Sasuke with the truth of his clan's demise. And he was the only one strong enough to defeat him if that didn't work. But there was also a good chance that he would get killed.

The vision of Naruto's death – Naruto alone, crying in pain, in the hands of the enemies who would rip him apart to extract the Kyuubi – was too much for her to handle. Even now it clenched her insides, making it hard for her to breathe.

"I'm not doing this to be cruel," Kurenai said. "But life is cruel. We need to make most of the time we have with those we love."

"I thought… I thought I would never see him again," Hinata murmured after a moment of silence. "It was such a dreadful feeling that - it was like I was dying myself. And when they brought him back…"

Tears formed in her eyes, threatening to spill on her cheeks.

Kurenai reached out to take her hand. "I know, Hinata. I know how hard it must've been… But you're both alive. You shouldn't be wasting your time keeping company to your old sensei – you should be out there right now, looking for him."

Hinata laughed. "You're hardly on the verge of retirement, sempai," she said. "But I'll take your advice – I promise I'll let him know… somehow. And soon."

"There are many ways to get that sort of point across," Kurenai remarked, taking a sip of tea. "But since he seems a little thick in that domain, you might have to be quite straight-forward."

Hinata stiffened, imagining a pair of blue eyes looking at her, puzzled and expectant, as she would stammer some sort of awkward confession. She and Naruto had already talked a couple of times. She even managed not to fidget at all when he was addressing her. It was all well and good when he was asking her for an extra roll of exploding parchment, but a confession?

"I'm done picking up my toys," Sumei announced, barging into the room. "Now I can stay with Hina-chan, right, Mommy?"

"Only if you promise to behave," Kurenai said, kissing the top his head.

_He looks so much like Asuma,_ Hinata thought as the little boy clambered onto her knees. _More and more each day…_

Kurenai was right. Time slipped by too fast to be a coward. Her decision was made. Now that Sasuke-kun was back, now was as good a time as ever to let Naruto know exactly how she felt.


	5. The brother

Even as he slowly emerged from the fog surrounding him, Sasuke was careful to keep his eyes closed. Little by little, he could begin to feel his surroundings again – the calm voices of the nurses, the clink of bottles, the soft, warm breeze coming from a nearby window. The smell of immaculate sheets and disinfectant told him he was in the hospital ward. And then there were other voices, too familiar and too painful to acknowledge.

There were times when he wished he had died on the battlefield after saving his friend. It would have been better that way – a simple, clean ending, a chance to be remembered with some measure of honor and respect. Those who died were much easier to forgive. Alive, he still needed to face was he had done.

There were times he still hoped he would die.

But life seemed to cling desperately to him, moving his lungs up and down, making the blood course through his veins, and now waking him up, tearing him from the depth of unconsciousness.

It made him remember. Bits and pieces rose to the surface of his thoughts and came together to form a clear picture.

Hawk had arrived to Konoha only to find it destroyed by Pein. The inhabitants of the village were trying to rebuild however well they could and burying their dead.

Standing on the hilltop overlooking the home he had abandoned, nothing but a pile of rubble now, Sasuke had been engulfed by emptiness. There was nothing left of his plans for revenge – nothing left of his memories, although that was possibly a good thing. Someone else had accomplished his vengeance, and now there was no enemy before him to strike down.

The others in the group had suggested pillaging the village, attacking the Konoha ninjas while they were down. While they squabbled, Sasuke had been struck with the realisation that his former companions were down there – alive or dead, who could say. Some of them were bound to have survived. Perhaps…

"We're not going to do anything of the sort," he'd said, interrupting the discussion. "It would only be a waste of time and energy."

He'd tried to convince himself at the time that it was a purely pragmatic and rational decision. They had bigger, better things to do. After a while, though, it became unclear what these bigger and better things were.

Hawk wandered around aimlessly for months on end. Sasuke had clung to the vague plan of attacking the elders of the council, the real culprits in his clan's annihilation, but imagining a bunch of bitter old men begging for his forgiveness hardly appeased his anger anymore. The truth was, nothing he could imagine would be a satisfying outlet for all the rage he had inside.

The others were getting impatient. The group was weakened by resentment and idleness, living like bandits on the roads, attacking ninjas they happened to stumble upon. Day by day, the burden on Sasuke's shoulders grew more painful to bear.

It was then that the thought of going back began to insinuate itself in his mind. The void inside of him was leaving room for other feelings to surface, much to his dismay, feeling he thought had disappeared forever, entirely consumed by his fury. He pushed it away brutally – he could never go back. The ninjas of Konoha would never forgive him for what he had done. His friends had long since stopped trying to get him back, as far as he could tell.

It was also then that Hawk crossed paths with Madara Uchiha again. He had been gathering strength in Sound with the last of the Akatsuki, and building the army Orochimaru had dreamed of. When he asked Hawk to join them, Sasuke's companions were adamant – this was the only way to real power and real glory. Sasuke had been too resigned to resist. He was hollow inside, and he supposed what happened next didn't really matter anymore. At least there would be more challenging opponents to fight, until he was killed himself.

And as Madara started spreading terror in the nearby countries, the ninjas of Konoha began to stir again.

"I heard a large team of leaf ninjas is heading our way," he had told Sasuke one evening. "They're making to destroy us – and Kakashi the Copy Ninja is leading them."

"Really?" Sasuke asked flatly, feigning indifference at the mention of his former sensei.

"It seems the yellow-haired Jyuriki hasn't given up hope to bring you back," Madara had said with a contemptuous sneer. "After all these years, he should know our type never change."

Sasuke had said nothing. Something was struggling to get out, coming deep from within himself, but he forced it down unmercifully.

"For the life of me, I can't understand why you didn't kill him yet," Madara had continued, feigning amazement. "Make sure he doesn't get away this time. We need the Kyuubi's power to be ours."

And so it was supposed to have happened. But for the first time in years, Sasuke had dreamed of Itachi that night.

_I had – had to tell you, before you let those others finish me off… Itachi. _

He supposed it was inevitable that once Naruto knew the whole story, he would use it as his last chance to break the barrier Sasuke had painstakingly build around his heart.

_Little brother…_

To his horror, Sasuke felt a tear roll down his cheek. There was a crash as a bottle fell to the ground, and voices were raised. Even with his eyes closed, they were sure to notice that he wasn't unconscious anymore.

He prayed for Itachi to give him strength. It was time to be alive again.

*****************************

Kakashi was sitting in a chair not far from the bed, oblivious to the commotion around him. But he had closed his book on his lap – a definite sign that he was alert and fully focused on what was happening. Sasuke was surprised to remember this, and his chest contracted painfully before a wave of panic overtook him. This was like being brutally thrown back into his past, as if he had just woken up and the past years had ceased to exist.

"Sasuke," Kakashi said simply, once the nurses had gone. "How are you feeling?"

Sasuke opened his mouth but didn't reply. He couldn't think of a single thing to say. His body was drained of energy, and his mind was in a tumult of confusion.

"I guess that's a pretty pointless question," Kakashi admitted. "But in this case I'd say we need to brush up on niceties before we go any further."

Sasuke tried to clear his throat. "Naruto – is he…"

"Alive, yes. He left the hospital only a few days ago. He's been spending most of his time here, though."

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, but he felt such powerful relief it made it almost hard to breathe. "He should be training… not wasting his time…"

"I think he's had plenty enough intense training the past few months," Kakashi remarked.

Sasuke felt his cheeks burn with shame and turned his head away. The present was catching up with him mercilessly, biting away at whatever hope he could cling to.

"As have you," the silver-haired ninja added, to Sasuke's surprise. "The terrible thing about war is that it makes children grow up too quickly, and ninjas grow stronger in haste. You two need to regain your strength now."

"There's nothing else I can do, in this state," Sasuke said dejectedly.

"Actually, you'd be surprised at the work that can be accomplished from a hospital bed," Kakashi replied. "It gives us time to think… to look back on tactical errors after a failed mission… and elaborate strategies to avoid making the same again."

Sasuke stayed silent. He didn't see how he could repair for the damage he'd done.

"Starting with simple things, of course," his former sensei continued. "No use contemplating the big picture right away."

Before Sasuke could be left to ponder on Kakashi's words, the door burst open, and Naruto came rushing into the room.

"Sasuke!" he cried, breathless. "You're…"

Sasuke slowly turned towards him. The two friends looked at each other, speechless. There was so much to say – so much to explain, so many amends to make… Yet Sasuke felt as if everything of real importance had been said already. And that the only thing that mattered anymore was the two of them, in this room, side by side.

Naruto gave an embarrassed laugh. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Don't worry, I finished my chapter a while ago," Kakashi said, getting up.

"Very funny, Kakashi-sens… _sempai_," Naruto corrected himself. "Sorry!"

Kakashi made his way towards the door. "But now that you're here, I can start on the next. We'll have plenty of time to talk later," he said, halting at the door and giving them a wave.

"Just as weird as ever," Naruto said, pulling up a chair to the bed and sitting down. "He insists that we call him – hey! Sasuke!"

Tears were quietly rolling down his cheeks again. The shock of seeing his friend again was too much for him to take, even though the shame he felt at his own display of emotion sliced through him like a hot blade.

"Don't look at me," he hissed. "Please."

"What, how do you think I reacted when I was told you were alive? When I saw you lying in the bed next to mine? When I realised that you were… you were…"

"When you look at me," Sasuke said, struggling to get each word out, "it reminds me of all the terrible things I did to you – to everyone… It makes me want to…"

_Start with simple things. No use contemplating the bigger picture right away._

"I was… relieved," he continued, forcing himself to turn around and meet Naruto's gaze, "when I heard you were all right."

Naruto nodded, visibly struggling to hide his emotion. "I was getting impatient for you to wake up," he said. "They moved me to another room when I regained consciousness, so I couldn't see how you were doing anymore. I tried to sneak into the ward one night, but…"

Sasuke gave a little snort. "Just as heedless as always."

"Yeah, I guess so. That's me!"

The two of them fell silent. No matter which way he turned it in his head, Sasuke couldn't see how he could go on talking without trying to formulate some sort of apology. But whatever words he used, they would be grossly inadequate considering all the harm he'd done. Even giving his life, it seemed, wouldn't have been enough to pay the price.

"I don't how to do it," he said quietly. "It's too hard… There's nothing I can say, nothing at all…"

"Then don't say anything," Naruto replied. "I don't want to hear any apology from you, and I never did."

"You nearly died because of me – you could've died at my own hand," Sasuke cried out, despite the physical pain it was causing him.

"But I didn't, because you saved my life, Sasuke!"

Naruto looked at him fiercely, his blue eyes like burning ice. He'd changed some over the years - his features had angled out, and his hair was slightly longer - but Sasuke recognised that look. It was the look Naruto had always had when facing a challenge: aware of the hardships he'd have to face but ever determined to succeed.

"It's no use ruminating over the past," he said. "You proved to me that you were still the same person I once knew, deep inside, when you risked your own life to protect me. Now keep proving it to me every day that we're together – be my teammate again, and train and fight with me. That's all the apology I'll ever need."

A soft breeze stirred the curtains. Sasuke felt his inner turmoil was somewhat appeased. There would be other people to deal with later, but as long as Naruto was by his side, there was a chance he wouldn't fall again.

"Well, as your teammate," he said with a small smile, "I'm telling you to go out and train instead of hanging around here."

Naruto grinned. "You can bet on your life you're going to have to work hard to catch up with me when you get out! I'll just ask Kakashi-sempai and Sakura to come visit you more often."

"Sakura?" Sasuke asked. He'd recognised her voice among the others – he shouldn't be surprised to receive a visit from her. But the thought of seeing her again made him feel very uncomfortable, especially if she was going to burst out crying or worry over him excessively, like she always had.

"Yes, as soon as I was told that you had woken up, I went to tell her, but she was too busy with her work to come right now… She's the Hokage's assistant now! But I'm sure she'll drop by later."

_The later, the better_, Sasuke thought. Naruto's easy-going nature made him confident that things could somehow return to normal between them. But as far as Sakura was concerned, he had an inkling it would be far from easy. He still remembered that quiet moonlit night so long ago, and was certain she did as well.


	6. The request

Heavy clouds were rolling lazily in the sky, throwing patches of shadow on the ground while the sunlight bore down relentlessly between the gaps. It seemed they might burst at any moment in a downpour of rain, cleansing the suffocating air, but for now they just passed by. Naruto looked up and sighed contently; despite the bizarre weather, he felt more light-hearted than he had in a very long time.

Tsunade-sama had summoned Sasuke and him to talk about what they were to do next. She wanted to talk to Sasuke alone first, she'd said, and had invited Naruto to join them later that morning. Sasuke, since his leaving the hospital five days earlier, had been keeping a low profile, only leaving his small flat at sundown, and never without Naruto. He wanted to start training again, even though neither of them had fully recovered yet, but he certainly didn't want to run into anyone he knew, or give the impression that he was imposing himself on the village.

However, his return had not gone unnoticed. Two night past, Naruto had spied some silhouettes moving on the far side of the training field – from what he could guess, Kiba and Shino. They hadn't tried to hide, but hadn't stepped forward either. For now they were just watching. They had returned last evening as well, but this time Ino was with them.

_I'm surprised Sakura wasn't with her to make sure she didn't get too close to Sasuke_, Naruto thought with a smile. She must've been really swamped with work, but he was certain she'd be here today. Even Kakashi-sempai had promised to arrive on time.

"Naruto-kun!"

Naruto turned around, searching with his eyes amongst the throng of the main street for who had called him. Hinata was walking up to him with a small smile, her blue hair gleaming on her shoulders.

"Hey Hinata," he greeted her. "What are you doing here?"

"Just taking a stroll," she replied after a moment's hesitation. "How about you?"

"I'm headed to the Hokage's office," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "We have to talk about important stuff – you know, since Sasuke decided to come back."

Hinata nodded slowly. "I'm glad he's all right. And you too, of course," she added immediately, wringing her hands behind her back.

Naruto frowned slightly. It occurred to him that Hinata looked different today for some reason… Had she done something to her hair? Then it popped out, literally, to his eyes. It was the first time he saw her without her trademark purple coat – no surprise, considering the weather, but the difference was certainly striking. His cheeks warmed and he quickly averted his eyes, flustered.

"So, um, anyway, I have something important I have to talk to you about as well," Hinata said.

"Really?" Naruto was surprised. Maybe she wanted to talk to him about her teammate's reaction to Sasuke's return – or perhaps it was simply about the jonin exams. "Well, go ahead, I'm all ears."

"Well, you see, it's rather… private," Hinata said, biting her bottom lip and blushing herself. "Could we meet somewhere quiet?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "All right. Meet me at Ichikura's around noon, I should be done by that time."

Hinata nodded, giving a slight sigh of relief. Naruto wondered what could be tormenting her that way. Could it be her father giving her a rough time again? He looked at her, suddenly concerned.

"Is everything all right, Hinata?"

"Oh yes, don't worry about it," she replied, her smile brightening. "I'll see you later, then."

Naruto watched her walk away and disappear into the crowd. Hinata had always been so different from the others… When he had been young and foolhardy, rushing into every fight without giving it a second thought, he hadn't thought much of such a reserved, soft-spoken girl. What sort of kunoichi didn't like to fight? He couldn't understand how a Hyuuga, with such immense capacities, could lack competitive spirit so completely.

It was only during their long months on the road that he had finally come to understand the importance of having someone like Hinata on a team. When fatigue and frustration got the best of them all, Hinata seemed never to run out of patience. When Ino and Sakura would start biting each other's head off over some trifle – friends though they were, they both had quite a temper – she was always there to calm them down. When Choji would complain about their meager rations, one look from her and someone around the table would inevitably take a turn into sacrificing a bit of food for him. She even managed to soothe Neji when he and Tenten got into their umpteenth lovers' quarrel of the day, something even Kakashi-sempai and Captain Yamato were powerless against.

Hinata wasn't their best fighter, but she was without a doubt the best at keeping stupid, useless fights from happening. In the end, Naruto reflected, that could make the difference between winning and losing.

"Lost on the path of life, eh?"

Naruto whirled around to find Kakashi leaning against a wall right next to him. He had once again appeared out of nowhere, and with some measure of embarrassment, Naruto wondered how long he'd been there.

"Don't sneak up on me like that, sempai!"

"You know, day dreaming is very bad habit to get into."

"I wasn't day dreaming!"

"If you're not careful," Kakashi remarked placidly, starting on his way, "you'll end up just as late as I always am."

Naruto repressed a grunt of frustration and followed Kakashi, with the unexplainable sensation of having been caught in the act. _Stupid old man,_ he thought. _He doesn't make any more sense now than he ever did. _

**********************************

"Sasuke and Naruto… I'd never thought I'd see you two standing side by side again. Shows that you never know what can happen."

The Hokage was seated at her desk, her hands crossed in front of her mouth and her amber eyes looking at Sasuke intently. Naruto felt uncomfortable – he couldn't tell what Tsunade was thinking, and the fact that Sakura hadn't shown up wasn't a good sign. He was pretty sure she wouldn't ask him to leave now, but perhaps Sakura had heard otherwise and didn't want to witness Sasuke's exile… And what of the council? Surely they wouldn't take kindly to an Uchiha reinvesting the village.

"As I told you, Sasuke," Tsunade said, as if she had read Naruto's mind, "the two elders are less than thrilled with letting you be a Konoha ninja again…"

Naruto saw Sasuke's fists curl into tight balls. He opened his mouth to speak, but Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder, silently signaling him to keep his opinion to himself.

"However, they also refused to hear the testimonies of two of my best chunins," she added, raising an eyebrow, "arguing that neither was entirely trustworthy."

_What bullshit,_ Naruto thought furiously, looking at Sai and Neji who were standing besides the Hokage's desk. Had the elders such a warped view of Konoha's best interest that they would refuse to believe them, simply because Sai had abandoned Root and Neji was from a lesser branch of the Hyuuga clan?

He was seething inside. It simply wasn't fair. Sasuke was still and silent, but Naruto could sense he was biting his tongue to the blood.

"Sai, could you tell us what you saw?" Tsunade asked, still looking at Sasuke.

Sai gave a small nod. "Captain Yamato asked me to fly over the battle sight, to look for survivors. On the edge of the field, I spotted Neiji, Lee and Shikamaru, who had been left unconscious, and dispatched some creatures to transport them to safety."

He paused for a moment, glancing briefly at Sasuke. "I continued to search for Naruto. When I finally saw him, I realized he had fallen. The members of Team Hawk, as well as the one they call the Monster of the Hidden Mist, were surrounding him. They seemed to expect Sasuke to deliver the blow, but all of a sudden… I thought I was mistaken at first. Sasuke started to attack those around him, for no apparent reason - despite their number, they were overpowered. From what I could tell from that far above, he seemed to be in a furor. The energy coming from him was so powerful I had a hard time holding on."

"When it was all over, Sasuke crumpled to the ground next to Naruto. I thought he had depleted his chakra – that he was dead. But when we came to get them, both of them were still breathing."

Tsunade nodded slowly. "And Madara Uchiha was nowhere to be found on the scene?"

Sai shook his head. "Nowhere. I sent creatures to survey every last inch of the battlefield…"

"And I sent the Nikken out as well," Kakashi said. "Wherever he went, he left the battlefield long before we arrived, leaving Sasuke to do the dirty work."

"I see," the Hokage said. "Well, I see no reason not to believe what Sai and Neiji told me. As far as anyone can tell, you did risk your life to save Naruto and prevent your former companions from taking his body. Would you mind telling us what made you change your mind?"

There was a tense silence in the room. Sasuke pressed his lips together.

"I told him about Madara," Naruto intervened to relieve his friend. "The real culprit in the murder of his clan."

Of course, that hadn't been the only thing – he'd mentioned Itachi, and had renewed his own vow of friendship to him. But that was between Sasuke and him, and he wanted it to stay that way.

"It's true," Sasuke said. "He's the real enemy, and I want to help Konoha defeat him. I'm ready to do whatever it takes to make up for my past actions."

Naruto grinned and looked over his shoulder triumphantly at Kakashi. He knew Sasuke was strong enough to swallow his pride and submit himself to the Hokage's will. He was starting to become more and more like his brother.

"I won't lie – in these dire times, a ninja of your capacity fighting in our ranks would be a considerable advantage," Tsunade said. "But I do need some sort of guarantee that you'll stay faithful to the village. Kakashi has already vouched for your good conduct, but I'm also asking both your former teammates to pass the jonin exams with you – they know you best, after all."

"That's it?" Naruto exclaimed. "Wow, I thought it was going to be harder!"

"Calm down, Naruto," Tsunade snapped. "It isn't done yet."

"I can sign up for the exams right now, if you want me to!"

"Naruto…" Kakashi warned in a low voice. "Sakura has to agree as well. She was as much Sasuke's teammate as you were."

"Well then, call her up right now and let's get this over with," Naruto said, growing more and more suspicious of her absence.

Sasuke stayed silent and impassive next to him, but his eyebrows lowered in the slightest of frowns.

"Sakura requested a day off, and I saw no reason not to give it to her," Tsunade said with a strange expression. "She has already been informed of these conditions. Whether or not she decides to sign up with you is up to her."

"This is fucking crazy," Naruto growled. "I have to talk to her right now."

"Naruto, don't," Sasuke said, grabbing him by the shoulder. "You heard what the Hokage said."

"I have to find out what's going on!" he replied, wrenching himself away from his grasp. "Sakura's strong enough to defend herself if she doesn't want to hear me out."

"That's for damn sure," Kakashi said with a sigh as Naruto bolted out the room. "I just hope he comes back without any internal injuries."

*******************************

Sakura had moved out of her parents' place when she'd started working as the Hokage's assistant. Her schedule was chaotic and she needed all the independence she could have to be available at all times. She now lived in a small flat not far from the Hokage's residence, and Naruto had gone there so many times he could've found the way to her place with his eyes closed.

It was the first time, however, that he went with some degree of apprehension.

He just couldn't understand it – they'd given their all into finding Sasuke again and making him come back. He'd held his promise to her… didn't that count for anything? Was she angry for some reason, or simply afraid?

"I just don't get it…" he murmured as he knocked on her door. "Sakura," he called. "It's me, open up."

After a moment, the door opened and he stepped in. Sakura's usually rosy cheeks were drained of color, and her green eyes were troubled. She gave him a small, tight smile.

"I should've known you'd come here immediately," she said wryly. "So Tsunade-sama told you, huh?"

He sat down on the couch next to her. "Sakura, I don't understand what's going on. You've been avoiding Sasuke, haven't you?"

"Listen, Naruto," she said. "I don't expect you to understand what I feel, but there's nothing I can do about it. I don't want to see him – or talk to him."

"But why?"

"Good grief, Naruto, don't you remember what he did to us?" she asked, shaking her head in disbelief. "All that pain and sorrow he left behind… you may be able to forget it, but I can't!"

"Sakura," he said gently, scooting closer and putting his arm around her shoulder. "This our chance to be a team again. You, me and Sasuke passing the jonin exams together… Isn't this what you always dreamed of?"

"What I always dreamed of…" Sakura looked down at her hands and Naruto realized, horrified, that a tear was rolling down her cheek. "You know, it's funny," she said, wiping it away and turning towards him. "I always thought that if I had fallen in love with you instead, my life would've been much easier."

Naruto gulped, feeling his face get hot and taking his hand away from her shoulder. "Stop it, Sakura-chan, you're making me blush."

In a not too distant past, he would've been thrilled to hear Sakura say something like that, and probably would've even tried to steal a kiss. But now it just felt out of place – Sakura was lovely, but she more like his sister than anything else. The fact that she was still obviously head over heals in love with that Uchiha bastard only made things clearer.

"I'm sorry… I don't know what I'm saying anymore."

"Just reconsider, please. We have to pass the jonin exams!"

Sakura opened her mouth to reply, but then frowned and shook her head. "Forgive me, Naruto – but my duty is with the Hokage and with the village."

"What does that have to do with it?"

Sakura stood up and went to her window. The soft pink color of her hair caught the light of the midday sun as she pressed her forehead against the glass.

"I can't vouch for someone I don't trust. I can't lie and say I'm sure Sasuke won't do what he did a second time."

Naruto watched her, a sinking feeling in his stomach. For the first time in his life, he felt as if there was absolutely nothing he could say or do that would make his friend feel better. If her heart was still broken now that Sasuke was back, how could it ever heal again?


	7. The confession

Thanks again for the wonderful reviews. I have a lot of work this month, which might explain why I'm not updating as often as I'd like, but the story _is_ being written, bit by bit :)

**************************************

Hinata bit her bottom lip and glanced up at the noonday sun. The street was busier than ever and the ramen shop behind her was starting to get crowded. She'd been waiting for Naruto for half an hour and was starting to wonder what was taking him so long, but she supposed it was to be expected. The Hokage probably had a lot of things to discuss with him, Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei – and Neji as well, perhaps. Her cousin had told her all about what he'd seen before losing consciousness, and by now everyone knew he was a key witness in Sasuke's saving Naruto's life.

"There's no possible doubt that he turned against his own teammates," he'd said, with a hard, unreadable expression in his pale eyes. "Seems to be a habit for him…"

Hinata knew Neji had never liked Sasuke Uchiha – both of them were too much alike to appreciate each other. Naturally skilled, immensely powerful, tortured by the complicated history of their clan… Yet her cousin was an honest person - brutally honest, sometimes. Even if it meant that Sasuke would be allowed to be a Konoha ninja again, Neji wouldn't lie when asked if he had indeed fought his former companions.

Sighing, she traced a curve around her in the dust with the tip of her foot. She didn't know exactly how to feel about all this herself… After all, a lot of damage had been done because of Sasuke Uchiha, and her closest friends had only narrowly escaped death. Although that wasn't only Sasuke's fault, she reasoned – he hadn't been the one to give her that awful scar… And she supposed that if Naruto trusted him, that was good enough reason for everyone to do the same.

"I wouldn't be too hasty in welcoming him back," Kiba had said when they'd been practicing the day before. "He still has to prove he has what it takes to be a Konoha shinobi."

Shino had nodded his approval silently. "What's the best thing to do in a case such as this one? Close observation, over a long period of time. Only this can determine if Sasuke Uchiha can fight with us and not against us."

Hinata knew they'd been out to watch his practice sessions with Naruto. She'd declined their offer to join them – what would Naruto think of her if he caught her there? They weren't being particularly discreet about it either. They wanted Sasuke to know that they hadn't forgotten him, and that many people were looking out for Konoha's interests.

Her clenched stomach interrupted her thoughts. It reminded her that she hadn't had a bite to eat that morning, but also that Naruto would show up any minute now. Suddenly, she remembered what she was planning to do in the first place and anxiety gripped her insides. She felt sick and light-headed. Was she really going to do this? She had waited long enough, to be sure, but what if he laughed at her… Or what if he just starred at her blankly? Perhaps he would even go so far as to express his distaste… But no, Naruto was too nice to do something like that – most likely he would refrain, out of pity for her…

Hinata was starting to panic, and her breathing quickened. _Calm down_, she told herself firmly, trying to summon Kurenai's face to her mind. _You're not a child anymore, you can do this._

Thinking of Kurenai and what she would do in such a situation steadied her somewhat, but she still felt impossibly jittery. She craned her neck to see if Naruto was coming down the street, but there was still no sign of him. Could something have gone wrong?

Finally, after what seemed like an endless wait, she spotted the familiar thatch of golden hair and orange and black robe Naruto had taken to wearing awhile back. Hinata's heart pounded against her chest. He was strolling along with his hands in his pockets, looking unusually serious.

"Na – Naruto-kun!" she called out, waving a little. "I'm here!"

He seemed to snap out of a daze and looked at her, puzzled. "Hinata? Oh, right – I told you to meet me here at noon."

It sounded as if he was only just remembering it. Hinata tried to ignore the twitch of disappointment she felt in the pit of her stomach, and continued valiantly on. "Yes, I was afraid something bad had happened," she said, wringing her hands.

_Don't fiddle,_ she told herself sharply. _Try to be cool – confident. Act like you're brave._

Naruto's eyes were filled with worry. Hinata had to brace herself a little every time she looked at him – they were such a rich, vibrant color, it was like looking directly into the sky. She longed for them to turn her way, to acknowledge her, to radiate her with their warmth… But for now they were elsewhere completely. It was like she didn't even exist – and yet he'd shown a bit of concern for her that morning. What could've happened in the meantime?

"Yeah, sorry about that," he said. "I had to go by Sakura's place after the meeting – I needed to see her badly… And then I just forgot about everything else."

So that's where he'd been – with Sakura. And that's where he was right now. One look and Hinata could tell he was still thinking about her. His thoughts of her had even pushed away a simple promise of meeting her for lunch.

How could she have been so stupid as to forget about Sakura herself? She had been so intent on confessing to Naruto that she hadn't even taken into account that there was every chance he loved someone else…

Her heart felt like it had shattered from hitting her ribcage too hard. The simple act of forcing down the lump in her throat and the tears in her eyes was grinding it down even more.

"I see," she murmured, forcing a small smile and feeling as if her face were breaking. "Well, I'm sure it's very important for you… For Sakura too…" She pressed her lips together. She didn't want him to see her cry. "I have to go, anyway, so…"

Naruto shook his head, as one would when waking up from a dream, and looked at her – really looked at her this time, eyes wide and guileless. "Hinata-chan, what are you talking about? We still have to have lunch."

"I'm not hungry," she said. "You must be really busy anyway, Naruto-kun."

"I'm never too busy for ramen," he replied, taken aback by her reaction and attempting a joke. "Besides, wasn't there something you wanted to talk to me about?"

Hinata looked down at her feet. "No, it's nothing. It's not really important now…" She turned away from him before he could see the tears spilling onto her lashes. "I won't bother you again, Naruto-kun."

"Hinata – Hinata, wait!"

But she was already rushing down the street, wiping her wet cheeks with the back of her hand. Her only consolation, amidst the waves of anguish and dejection washing over her, was that she had managed to spare herself some measure of humiliation. Naruto didn't love her, and never would, but at least he hadn't had to tell it to her face.

********************************

"Where have you been all day, Hinata?"

The dining room was quiet and still and cold, despite the hot air coming from outside. Hinata picked at her food aimlessly with her chopsticks, still feeling as if she would throw up if she tried to swallow anything. Her father was sitting right in front of her, looking stern and suspicious.

"Nowhere special," she said quietly, hoping he would drop the subject. She was in no mood to put up with his remarks tonight. All she wanted was to be left alone – misery was company enough.

"I've noticed you're often out and about lately," he said. "Even though I specifically asked you to help Hanabi train for the chunin exams."

Chunin at the tender age of twelve... Something she'd never even considered for herself. She'd been more than happy passing the exam at sixteen, and she didn't see why it was any of her business if her father was hell-bent of having Hanabi become a chunin already. Hinata sighed wearily and put her chopsticks down.

"Father, I'm sorry, but I've just been busy," she tried to explain. "I have to train every day when I'm not teaching…"

"And to what purpose?" he asked, scowling. "I don't see how training will help you any with those children – it's a fairly easy job, one I specifically allowed you to do so that you could be home more often."

Hinata kept her eyes on her bowl. She knew her father well, and he probably wasn't done with her, but if she just let it blow over without saying anything it would be over all the quicker. She glanced at Hanabi, who was seated next to him. Her sister was looking out the window, completely disinterested in the conversation. Nothing had ever mattered much to Hanabi, except training. Hinata wondered briefly how her teammates could stand her.

"Hinata, are you listening to me?"

"Yes, Father, I - "

"You'll stop with that training nonsense, is that understood?"

"But, Kiba and Shino - "

"I want you to be here when I ask for you," he said. "When _Hanabi_ asks for you. One day she'll be the leader of the Hyuuga clan, and as a member of a lesser branch -"

Hinata rolled her fists into balls. "Yes, I'll have a restraining seal on my forehead just like you put on Neji, I know."

The words had tumbled out of her mouth without warning. She could hardly believe what she'd just said, and from the look on their faces, Hanabi and her father couldn't either.

"What did you say?" her father asked, shock and restrained fury thick in his voice.

Hinata felt her face grow hot. She'd definitely crossed the line – she should apologize right now to prevent any damage. Yet the bitterness and pain that had sliced through her like a sword after her meeting with Naruto were spreading to her entire body, boiling through the barrier she usually kept in place around her resentment. She was tired, impossibly tired of holding back. Of being thrown the crumbs and expected to be thankful for them.

"I'm going to take the jonin exams," she blurted out. "That's why I need to train."

She hadn't taken the decision until she'd worded it aloud. Kiba and Shino had been urging her on, as well as Kurenai, but she'd never had the courage to really set it in her mind. Yet as she spoke, she realized that was the real motivation behind her training.

She did want to become a jonin. She wanted to prove what she was worth – to herself, to her sempai and her friends, to _him_…

"Are you out of your mind?"

"No, I'm not," Hinata said firmly, emboldened by her resolution. "I'm sure I could be useful to the village as a jonin."

"Your duty is with your clan first!" her father cried, standing up and nearly knocking the table over.

Hinata rose to look him in the face. "It was until you decided to replace me with Hanabi as your heir," she replied. "You did what you thought was best for the clan, but you lost all claim on my future that day, Father. I will not serve as Hanabi's training dummy and give up on my own dreams just because it suits you!"

"No daughter of mine will speak to me with such disrespect!"

Hinata furiously blinked back tears. "You never wanted me as your daughter!" she said, her mind reeling with all the anger and sadness she had kept inside over the years. "I was too weak, too gentle… I tried hard to please you but it was never enough. And now there's no sense for me in trying to be your daughter any longer."

"How dare you!" her father bellowed, grabbing her wrist to drag her to him and raising his hand to strike her.

"Father, no!"

Hinata flinched away but the blow never came. Hanabi had immobilized her father's arm in midair and was keeping it there, breathing quickly.

"Go," she told Hinata, and for a split-second, she could see a hint of softness in her sister's eyes.

Hinata starred dumbly at the picture before her, as if she was seeing her father for the first time. A powerful man getting older, crushed under the burden of duty, rigid with the fear of change. A man she had been foolish enough to entrust her entire life to, without ever thinking about what she wanted for herself.

She said nothing as she turned away to leave. Her head was buzzing, yet it seemed as if it had been washed clean of all the torments that had been plaguing her. She only knew what she had to do now, and more importantly, where she had to go.

When Kurenai found Hinata standing on her doorstep that evening, a large canvas bag at her feet, she knew better than to ask any questions. Questions would be for later. For now, a shoulder to cry on would do.


	8. The team

"Whatever you're planning, I'm sure it isn't going to work, just so you know."

Naruto merely shrugged, eyes still closed. He was laying in the thick grass of the training ground, just on the edge of the forest, and not far from the three logs. Sasuke was leaning against a tree a little further away, protecting himself from the harsh glare of the sun.

"Don't worry, it'll work out fine," Naruto replied lazily. "Sakura just needs a little… prompting, that's all."

Sasuke bit back a rebuttal. He couldn't expect Naruto to understand how difficult it was, adapting to a normal life in Konoha after all this time. He didn't try to explain, and he didn't resent his friend for being unable to put himself in his place – after all, there wasn't much he was in right to demand right now, and least of all some understanding. But it was grating. The simple act of talking to Kakashi was only starting to feel normal again; interacting with Naruto's others friends, such as Sai, still made him feel completely out of place.

He'd been through worse – after all the obstacles he'd overcome and the wretched delusions he'd narrowly escaped, he wasn't going to stop now and abandon the idea of bringing honor back to the Uchiha clan. But what he certainly didn't need was a rigged encounter with Sakura.

Sasuke had never pretended to know much about girls – for all his former popularity, he couldn't understand the way their mind worked, and he hadn't exactly had a chance to delve further into the subject. Not that he had ever felt the need to do so. In recent history, the only girl he had any close contact with – he loathed the word, but couldn't find a more suitable one – was Karin, and she had been a piece of work. Like an obscene, distorted mirror of Sakura herself: medicine came from her own blood which she gave to him freely, in exchange for the chance to follow his every command and scrounge for bits of attention.

Nevertheless, in spite of his ignorance in that particular domain, Sasuke's intuition told him that Naruto's adamant confidence was leading them straight to disaster. Or rather, leading _him_. Sakura had no reason to be mad at Naruto, but given the way she had been avoiding him since his return – no easy feat, and yet she had managed – he guessed she was not in a forgiving mood.

He hated to think it, but he'd been a bit taken aback. And a bit frustrated as well.

Sasuke scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. It was like a bug he kept trying to flick away, without any success, and the more he tried not to think of it, the more it popped up in his mind.

"I'm serious," he said. "This isn't a good idea."

Naruto propped himself on his elbows and raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah right, one look at you and she'll change her mind. Deep inside, she wants our team back together – I know she does."

"I think you're underestimating her," Sasuke said, suddenly uncomfortable with the subject. "I mean – she's not going to act as if nothing happened."

And what if she did? What if Naruto was right? What if this had been one big misunderstanding? He probed his mind, imagining what he would do if faced with Sakura's friendly indifference.

It wasn't satisfying, to say the least. Of course, in the prospect of the exams and forming their team again, it would be something to work with, but…

_But what?_ he scolded himself. _There is no other prospect than that one. _

He was starting to feel seriously agitated, and he didn't like it. Waiting around like this was driving him insane.

"Come on," he said, walking over to Naruto. "Get off your ass. We might as well make good use of our time."

Naruto plopped back down. "Piss off. It's too hot and too nice a weather to train."

Sasuke kicked him hard in the side and Naruto doubled over, laughing under his pain.

"You sick bastard – kicking a friend while he's down."

"Get up, idiot," Sasuke insisted, kicking him again.

"You asked for it," Naruto replied, and moments later Sasuke was surrounded by a large number of perfect replicas, all looking at him with the same crafty grin.

Fighting with Naruto was more gratifying than with any other sparring partner he had had. They were almost exact opposites, and each blow and jutsu was countered with the precise type of defense that demanded perfection. A few days into their training and he could already feel himself thriving, regaining strength and precision, fitting in to his reflexes again. And remembering why leaving his teammate behind in the first place had been like ripping half of himself away.

He tried to summon the same feeling that had prompted his departure in the first place – the bitter jealousy he'd felt when he'd realized that Naruto was becoming stronger than him. Yet it wouldn't be roused. He still appreciated measuring himself against Naruto, but now instead of wanting to beat him to prove himself, he wanted his friend to push him forward, to test his limits, to kindle his skills.

Sasuke supposed it was simply due to the fact that he was older now.

"Not bad, Uchiha," Naruto said, breathless, as he had just narrowly dodged a fireball. "Still a bit rusty though."

"You should be one to talk, your shadow clones look just the way they did back before we graduated."

Naruto was about to reply, but something behind Sasuke caught his eye.

"Sakura-chan!" he called out. "Come over here!"

Sasuke turned around, his throat tightening. Sakura was standing on the edge of the forest, and if the look on her face was any indication, she was not pleased with what she was seeing.

He watched, transfixed, as she took a few hesitant steps forward, walking out into the sunlight. She hadn't changed much as far as her general appearance went, but there was definitely something different about her. Sasuke couldn't put his finger on it. It was only when her pace quickened that he realized what it was – she had gone from teenager to woman. Not that she was any taller, or any curvier, but she had shed every last trace of awkwardness about her, and moved with such grace and balance that Sasuke, for the first time, truly felt as if he was in the presence of a kunoichi and not a girl. This was, without a doubt, someone who could gently embrace you and heal your injuries, but who could also wound to kill, quickly and effectively.

The thought made a tremor pass through him. He frowned. His mouth felt hot and dry.

"Why did you tell me to come, Naruto?" she asked him, her voice tense. She hadn't looked at Sasuke yet, even though she'd clearly seen him, but the strain of ignoring him was showing. "You know I'm busy right now."

Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously. "I thought you'd be happy to see us, Sakura. You can't stay cooped up inside all day…"

Sakura said nothing, and glanced at Sasuke. Her sea green eyes were cold and angry. He stared right back, defiant. There was so much that had been left unspoken, it was almost palpable, like a thick cloud of smoke compressing the air between them.

"Hello, Sakura," he said quietly.

"Sasuke."

She looked away, faltering under his dark gaze, but then he wasn't feeling particularly brave either.

"I have to go back to work. I have a lot of important things to do and -"

"Aw, come on, Sakura," Naruto pleaded, giving up every pretense of cheerfulness. "What you have to do is stop sulking and start training with us again – we're a team, right? Don't you remember all the good times we had here?"

"So you thought bringing me to this spot would be enough to make me stop sulking, as you say? I already told you, I'm not passing the exams with you."

She looked at Sasuke again, as if she simply couldn't help her eyes from slipping his way, but didn't dare let them stay there too long.

"Don't you remember that first day, right next to these logs, with Kakashi-sempai?" Naruto asked. "Don't you recall what he said?"

"Oh, for crying out loud, stop living in the past, Naruto," Sakura snapped. "We're not kids anymore. Team 7 was a long time ago, and it's over now. We all took different paths, and that's just the way it is."

"You are impossible," Naruto said as she turned to leave. "I just don't understand you. After all this time, when we have everything we strived for…"

"Everything _you_ strived for, Naruto," Sakura called back. "I don't want this anymore."

Her words cut through the air like a shuriken, and Sasuke felt as if it had lodged somewhere deep inside of him. He was furious against himself for letting it affect him like that. He was also furious to have kept his mouth shut – he should've confronted her and have it over with.

"Seriously, I don't know what to do anymore," Naruto said, shaking his head. "I've tried everything – she won't even explain to me why she's so angry."

"Forget it," Sasuke replied, adjusting the bands around his forearms. "Let's get out of here."

"What, you're going to give up just like that?" Naruto cried, following him across the training field.

"It's obvious she's not going to change her mind."

"Why don't you try something for once, genius? After all, it's you she has a bone to pick with, not me. For fuck's sake – just go talk to her and tell her you're sorry. Doesn't that always work with women?"

"I don't know where you get your information," Sasuke said, glaring at him, "but Sakura's not stupid. She'll know I'm bullshitting her."

"So you're not sorry?"

He looked away, uncomfortable. "That's not what I meant. It's just… it's not going to work, okay?"

"Sasuke, I'm not going to pass those jonin exams without you. All right? So you better fucking well convince Sakura to sign up with us, or else we're all screwed."

He remained silent for a moment. Naruto was right, of course – he was the one who had to solve the problem. And he couldn't let Naruto down, not now, not when there was so much to do still to prove himself worthy of his friendship again. They had to pass the jonin exams, and they had to do it together.

"All right," he finally replied. "I'll talk to Sakura."

"Good, good," Naruto said, slapping his shoulder. "Now let's go get some ramen."

But as they started on the path back to the main street, Naruto suddenly halted, as if he'd heard something. Sasuke could make out vague sounds coming from the forest – they sounded like grunts of effort to him. Probably someone in the middle of an exercise routine.

"Listen, go on ahead, I'll catch up with you later," Naruto said, leaving the path and heading for the forest. "And don't forget to go talk to her!"

Sasuke gave a soft snort. He didn't see how he could possibly forget – he'd been dreading it for longer than Naruto could even imagine. And this time there was no pushing it back until later. The best he could hope for were a few hours' respite.


	9. The mystery

It was a surprise even to himself that he could've recognized Hinata's voice from such a distance. But there was really no other like it – even when she was training and crying out in exertion, her voice remained steady and soft. And so, when Naruto had heard her exercising a little further away, he had decided that now was his chance to make up for his blunder a few days earlier.

It had been really rude of him to show up late like that, even though it hadn't been entirely his fault. As far as he could recall, Hinata had always been very punctual – he couldn't blame her for being so sore about his lateness. Maybe he could make it up to her, and even offer to treat her to lunch. His money was scarce, as usual, but it was the least he could do.

Naruto quickly made his way amongst the trees until he came to a small clearing. Sure enough, Hinata was practicing her kicks and punch on a large tree trunk. She had bundled her long hair up in a messy ponytail, and her face was red and shining with sweat. A little further away, seemingly supervising her performance, was Lee, timer in hand and towel around his neck.

"Hi there, Naruto!" he called out, grinning. "Want to join us?"

Hinata stopped, breathing hard, and looked at him as he came nearer. "Naruto-kun – what are you doing here?"

"I just thought I heard you practicing," he said. "I didn't know you were with Lee," he added, looking at the dark-haired ninja suspiciously.

"Well, it just so turns out that Hinata asked me to help her improve her endurance for the jonin exams," Lee said.

"Really? You're passing the jonin exams?"

Hinata nodded, biting her lower lip. Naruto didn't know she had been so serious about it. In fact, last he had heard she wasn't even sure to sign up. He was a bit vexed to hear this news from Lee, and also a bit jealous that she should ask Lee to help her, and not him. Of course, he was no taijustu expert, but he was almost as quick as Lee was, and probably stronger as well.

"Listen, can I talk to you for a moment, Hinata?"

She glanced back at Lee uncertainly, but Lee only gave her a thumbs-up sign. She turned back towards Naruto and followed him a little further away.

"I want to apologize, you know, for the other day at Ichikura's – I was a real ass, showing up so late."

Hinata gave a little shrug. "Don't worry about it, Naruto-kun. It's fine."

But her eyes betrayed her words. They were so sad, Naruto thought – sad and beautiful. Her long, dark lashes made their nacreous shade stand out even more. Surely she couldn't be so sorrowful because of his stupid mistake?

"No, seriously, I want to make it up to you," he insisted. "Let me buy you lunch."

She gave him a small smile. "That's really nice of you, Naruto-kun, but I can't. I asked Lee to help me and… well, you understand. The exams aren't very far away."

Naruto couldn't argue with that. Helpless and confused, he watched as Hinata walked back to the tree trunk and put herself back into position.

"Join us whenever you want, Naruto!" Lee cried out to him. "Remember, the strength of youth is determination!"

Before he could hear any more gibberish, Naruto hurried back towards the road, feeling even gloomier than he had after Sakura had blown them off. First her, now Hinata – what was it with women, anyway? Why wasn't apologizing enough? What were men expected to do to make up for their mistakes?

This was utterly incomprehensible. Making up and moving on was simple enough, to his mind. Yet women seemed to make everything more complicated than they were.

After a fruitless afternoon of half-hearted work on his aim, Naruto decided that perhaps Kiba and Shino would be able to inform him on what was troubling Hinata so much. He found them on the trainings grounds next to the Inuzuka domain. Akamaru barked loudly in welcome and went to lick Naruto's hand as he approached.

"Hey guys," Naruto said, ruffling Akamaru's soft white fur. "What's going on?"

Kiba stretched his arms behind his back and gave a big yawn. "Nothing much. This weather is terrible, though – our training's been off all day. I just can't seem to get Akamaru to work properly."

"Shino, aren't you boiling under there?" Naruto asked.

"Self-cooling material," he simply replied.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "So… are you guys passing the jonin exams? I heard Hinata was."

"Yeah, that was quite a shock, honestly – she couldn't make up her mind to sign up with us, and then all of a sudden…"

"Kiba," Shino interrupted. "Why do you think she was so hesitant in the first place? Her father, of course."

"Exactly. And now that she'd moved out…"

"What?" Naruto exclaimed. "Wait a minute. Hinata moved out of her father's home?"

"She told us that it was to help Kurenai take care of Sumei while Shikamaru was away, but I don't think that's the real reason. It happened last Tuesday, as far we can tell."

Tuesday… That was precisely the day when she'd asked to talk to him. Could it be that she wanted to tell him about her plans?

"So that's why she looks so sad…"

"If you ask me, it's the best decision she ever made," Kiba said. "But she has been feeling a little down lately, don't ask me why."

"How do you know Hinata looks sad, Naruto?" Shino asked. "Have you seen her today?"

"Oh, um, well, I just came across her while she was practicing with Lee," Naruto replied quickly, feeling stupid in his haste to justify himself.

Kiba and Shino shared a glance, and Naruto felt a pang of envy towards them. During their months on the road, he had seen how much they looked after Hinata, as if they were her own brothers. It reminded him of how he and Sasuke had felt somehow invested with protecting Sakura, back when they were genin – expect Team 8 was still a team in a way, and Team 7 wasn't.

"Anyway, good luck with your training," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I'll see you two around."

The sun was low in the sky and Naruto felt more dejected than ever. And even though Hinata's startling decision explained why she looked so troubled, it still didn't satisfy him as to why she had refused to have lunch with him. There was still something that didn't quite fit.

He told himself to simply drop it, but for some strange reason, he found it impossible. He kept thinking back to Hinata's lovely opaline eyes, filled with sorrow, as if accusing him of a crime he knew nothing about.

In a situation like this, there weren't many people he could turn to for help, he thought glumly. In fact, there was only one.

**********************************

Kakashi lived in a small flat, not too far away from his own. When he knocked on his door that evening, fully expecting him to be home in company of his novels, it occurred to Naruto that he had never been to his sempai's place. It was strange, considering the number of years they'd known each other.

The door opened and a dark eye peaked out.

"Naruto – that's a surprise."

"Can I come in, sempai? It's an urgent matter."

Kakashi stepped aside to let him in. The flat was neat and clean, but completely bare of any decoration or ornament. In fact, it revealed as little about its occupant as the occupant usually revealed about himself.

Kakashi had taken off his jacket and headband. His red eye was half-closed, giving him a particularly lazy, lopsided air.

"I hope I'm not interrupting you in anything important," Naruto said teasingly.

"Nothing whatsoever," Kakashi replied, offering him a seat at the small wooden table that stood in the main room. "So, what can I do for you?"

Naruto took a deep breath. "Sempai… I need your advice. I'm really desperate."

"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment, but go ahead."

"Well… you see… There's something I just don't understand about women."

Kakashi blinked, then looked at him in silence for a moment before bursting out laughing. It wasn't often that Naruto saw his sempai in such an open display of mirth.

"I don't see what's so funny," he remarked, slightly miffed.

"Oh, nothing," Kakashi replied, getting up and heading towards his kitchen. "But I need you to be more precise, or else we could be here all night."

"Well, you see, first of all there's Sakura," Naruto said, frowning as he heard Kakashi rummaging through the cupboards. "She's mad at Sasuke and she refuses to give him a chance to make up for what he did, even though it'll keep us from passing the jonin exams, and I don't understand why. I mean, I know he hurt her – he hurt all of us. But he came back, so there's no point in pushing him away now, right?"

"Go on," Kakashi's voice sounded after a moment.

"And then there's Hinata – I was supposed to meet her for lunch after seeing the Hokage because she had to talk to me about something, but I was running really late because I dropped by Sakura's place first, and now Hinata won't have lunch with me, and she asked Lee to help her train. They're not even that close, and now I'm thinking maybe she was going to ask me, but didn't want to anymore after what I did. Does that make sense?"

Kakashi came back with two small glasses and a short, stout bottle.

"Have you even been listening to what I just said?" Naruto asked.

"Every single word," he said, pouring them both a shot of a greenish, pungent concoction.

Naruto crinkled his nose and held the glass up by the tip of his fingers. "What the hell is this?"

"Prune liquor," Kakashi replied, and with one swift movement, pulled down the mask covering his face.

Naruto was so astonished he could barely believe what he was seeing at first. But sure enough, Kakashi's features were completely exposed, from forehead to chin.

"Sempai!" he exclaimed. "You took your mask off!"

"Well spotted. How do you think I manage when I'm eating?"

"But – but – sempai. You're… Well, I mean, your face, it's so…"

"Shhh. Take a drink first. Then we'll talk."

Kakashi downed his shot in one gulp. Naruto had a harder time finishing it – the liquor was so strong it left a burning trail in his throat and numbed his tongue.

"Good grief," he croaked, tears coming to his eyes. "This is horrid."

"Jiraiya told me that when you finally became a man, I should teach you how to drink like one." He served them both another shot. "Bottoms up."

The second drink wasn't as bad as the first, but Naruto still felt like he was going to choke. "How is this supposed to help me?"

"Now, Naruto, there are two things you need to remember about women," Kakashi said, oblivious. "The first is that you should always try your best not to anger them, unless you have a death wish."

"I already learned that from Sakura-chan."

"Good. Then stop wondering why she won't forgive Sasuke as quickly or as easily as you did. And don't try to patch things up between them, because it'll only make her angrier. Can't you try to guess why it's so hard for her to see him come back?"

Naruto thought for a moment. The alcohol was making it harder and easier at the same time to reach a conclusion. "Because she… loves him?"

"Right. And that brings me to my second point – when a women is in love, there's one thing and one thing only she wants to hear. And it's not 'I'm sorry' or even 'forgive me'."

"So what is it?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I'll leave to figure that out for yourself. But the thing is, no matter what you do or how hard you try to make things better, she won't relent until you say it. And that should give you some answers concerning your second problem."

"You mean with Hinata?" Naruto asked, feeling his face grow hot. "You mean she… you don't seriously think she…"

Kakashi poured him another glass. "Well, she certainly likes you, let's leave it at that."

"Likes me?" Naruto yelped. "But… that's crazy, sempai. She never even spoke to me that much until we left for the mission. And besides, she's a Hyuuga, and I'm… I'm..."

"You're a young man she admires, and who probably caught her eye some time ago already."

Naruto was dumbfounded. It didn't make any sense, and yet… Suddenly, he got a terrible feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it wasn't only the alcohol. He'd been yammering on about Sakura, and how he needed to see her… If Hinata did indeed like him, unimaginable as it was, how must have that sounded to her?

"I'm the biggest fool on the planet," he said, banging his forehead against the table.

"I'm glad the liquor is making you see things clearly," Kakashi said. "Have another glass."

Naruto complied. This stuff was pretty good, once you got used to it.

"But sempai… how do you know all this?"

Kakashi shrugged. Naruto was starting to feel dizzy and light-headed, but he seemed unaffected by it. "You start to understand some things over the years… about falling in love… listening to what someone is trying to tell you, and to your own heart."

"That's beautiful, sempai," Naruto said, a symphony of feelings bubbling up his throat. "Have you ever been in love?"

Kakashi shrugged. "If I was, it was a very long time ago."

Naruto slammed his fist down on the table. "Well, I think you should find yourself a girl! And you should start by keeping your mask off."

"There's a reason why I wear it," Kakashi said, frowning. "It's not just a whim, you know."

Naruto looked at him squarely, then snorted in laughter. "I know why, it's because you don't want women to…"

"You're too tipsy to reason properly. Or to go home, for that matter. You're sleeping on the couch tonight."

"Does that mean we're going to keep drinking?"

"No. Lesson's over." Kakashi pulled his mask back over his face, and smiled under it. "But we can play cards if you don't mind. It's not often I have company."


	10. The fight

Props to those who have patiently waited for a SasuSaku reunion scene... I hope this doesn't disappoint, there's much, much more to come. Thanks to all those who reviewed so far.

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It was already dark, but the moon was full, and it shined placidly on, bathing the training ground in an dim, milky light, reflecting off the dull blade of the kunai. Sakura squinted and threw it at the target. It landed dead center. She could've done it with her eyes closed by now. She'd started practicing when the sun was still hovering over the horizon, yet she didn't feel like stopping. Anything to occupy her mind – any pointless, recurrent task that didn't require too much attention, but still made her focus on something. It was intellectual laziness, a robotic movement repeated over and over again, and it was just what she needed.

Even though it did nothing to soothe her anger. What she really would've needed was to trash the entire place – rip the asphalt apart, break the trees in half. But Sakura Haruno wasn't rash. She wasn't rash and she wasn't reckless and she was a trained, mature medic nin who had long since outgrown that kind of childish antics.

But damn it all, she was so _angry_.

How could Naruto have done this to her? He was a great friend, but he was sometimes so clueless about feelings it drove her insane. He just blundered on with his good intentions, excepting everything to fall into place. They were the valiant ninjas of Konoha, after all – the saviors, the brave, the pure. Black and white. Good and bad.

Of course, she thought, he was getting the just rewards of all his sacrifices and hard work. Naruto had become the hero of the village, the sun shining on them all. Sakura had noticed the way the young female chunins giggled when he passed them by in the street, the way Konohamaru and his friends looked at him with worship in their eyes… And now with Sasuke by his side, it would only get worse.

The two of them would bring reconciliation between the Uchiha clan and the Hokage's entourage. They would be named ANBU captains and defeat any ninja standing in the way of justice. Kakashi would beam with pride at his former students, although it was hard to imagine him beaming at all.

A happy ending to a tragic story. But one that left her nowhere. Naruto and Sasuke didn't need her anymore to form a team.

It made her feel impossibly childish to feel jealous like that. Yet it was such blatant injustice for Sasuke to return and reclaim what he'd left, forcing her to step back and become the third wheel again…

When she'd seen them training together near the three logs, she'd found the sight breathtaking and enraging all at once. Their fighting styles completed each other so well it was almost indecent. Sasuke's sharp, lightning-fast moves chiseled Naruto's devastating chakra, and they both looked like they were having the time of their life. Naruto, so powerful and boisterous, and Sasuke, calculating and precise, his dark gaze never missing a beat…

It was the first time Sakura had seen him in four years.

When their eyes had met, inevitably, despite her vain efforts to ignore him, it had been like a sword driven through her chest.

Stupid, foolish Naruto. Sakura knew she was being unfair – none of this was his fault, not really. Still, she was sure he'd whined to Sasuke to go talk to her after she'd left. She'd managed to gain twenty-four hours of respite, as Tsunade had sent her on a round trip to a neighboring village to gather supplies, but she couldn't stay away from Konoha forever.

_Now I'm the one who wants to leave… _

"How long are you planning to keep this up?"

Sakura didn't have to turn around to recognize the voice. It was almost as if her train of thought had been leading her straight to this moment. _Sasuke._ The wire netting surrounding the training ground was gleaming in the stark moonlight like a delicate cage. She looked at it stubbornly, willing herself not to turn around and acknowledge him.

"I suppose you think I deserve it… "

The voice was low, neutral, almost bored. _Why did he come here?_ she asked herself, filled with rage. _Why can't he leave me alone?_ Her heart felt like it was being hooked, tugged at, pulled against her own will right up against her spine.

"I don't have anything to say to you," she answered through gritted teeth, throwing another kunai on the target in front of her. It buried itself in the middle circle with a dull thud.

Sasuke shrugged. "Naruto thinks we should -"

"I don't care what he thinks," Sakura snapped, glancing over her shoulder. He was leaning against the railing, one hand casually gripping the netting. He wasn't looking at her. He didn't seem to be looking at anything in particular. It made her want to slap him. "I just want you to go away."

Another kunai landed on the target, much harder this time, and almost threatening to spilt it in two.

"I'm not doing this out of my own free will," Sasuke remarked flatly. "Or to ask you to make amends. But the Hokage won't let me take the jonin exam without the two of you – and since Naruto refuses to pass it if I don't… Understand, it's my duty – our duty. Against Madara, Konoha needs every able jonin it can get."

Sakura whirled around to face him. "How dare you? How dare you talk to me about _duty_? You betrayed your village, your team, the Hokage – and now you're telling me about what our _duty_ is!" Her fingers squeezed the kunai in her hand until she thought the metal would cut through her skin.

Sasuke frowned. "My first duty was to avenge my family – my brother sacrificed everything so that I could! And even – even if I mistook who the real enemy was in the end…" Each word seemed to be causing him some difficulty. He still wasn't looking at her. "I've never lived for anything else than duty! And now I have to follow Itachi's way."

"You're lying !" Sakura cried. "You've only ever thought about yourself, about yourself and your revenge and your arrogance – you never cared about other people!"

"I saved Naruto's life, and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again," he countered, thrusting the netting away and pushing himself straight. He looked at her at last – his eyes were like two dark pools of fury, but this time, she knew hers were not any kinder, or any softer.

"What goes on between you and Naruto is your own business. But I don't see why I should care about you, and if you become a jonin or not. If you're expecting my pity…"

"I never asked pity from anyone – and I'm not about to ask it now, least of all from you."

Sakura went on. The weight pressing down on her heart was making it hard for her to breathe. She had to say this – she had to get rid of what had been haunting her for seven long years. "… or if you think I'm going to beg you to stay, or tell you I'd do anything to make you happy…" Tears came unbidden to her eyes, and she blinked them away furiously. "You had better go back from where you came from, Sasuke. I'm not the ridiculous little girl I was back then."

Sasuke glanced away briefly. "I'm not the same person either – it feels like it wasn't even in the same lifetime."

"I'm surprised you even remember that pathetic tirade of mine," Sakura said, giving a mirthless laugh. "After all, it was just another shot in the dark, wasn't it? A tickle of the wind against your ear that you brushed away like everything else…"

He frowned. "That's not entirely -"

"Are you going to lie again and tell me you shouldn't have left? Do you think I'm that stupid?"

"No," he insisted firmly, meeting her eyes again. "I had to leave, but what I said – about you…"

"Shut up!" she yelled, not wanting to hear anymore. This was just another one of his mind games – she wouldn't let herself fall for it again. "Say one more word, and I won't hold myself back!"

"If you don't want to hear my explanation - "

The kunai whizzed by so close to Sasuke's face that he gave out a barely audible gasp. Barely audible, but she had noticed it all the same. The weapon pierced right through the metal netting with no more difficulty than if it had been cloth, and disappeared on the other side. Sakura's every nerve was on edge. She saw the familiar red glow coming from Sasuke's stare.

"So you're going to use the Sharingan against me?" she asked quietly, even though she was trembling with fury.

"You're as strong as Tsunade now," he replied evenly. "If I didn't, you would crush my head with one strike of your fist. I can see right through you - even without the Sharingan, it's not hard to tell that you would kill me if you could."

He was right. Her rage was such that it felt like a fire building up inside of her, fanned out with every word he said and spreading to each of her limbs. She had never felt like this towards anyone before – not even the myriad of cruel enemies they had fought over the years. And she knew fully well why that was.

It was like falling down backwards. The sickly, swooping feeling of desperation made her want to fall to her knees and never get up. There was only one thing left to do – as soon as she would touch him, whether it be to strike him or gently stroke his cheek, it would make him too real, and she would be lost.

"I won't give you the pleasure of fighting against you," she said as she started to walk away. "That's more attention than you deserve."

She hurried past him to get to the gate, but was brutally stopped in her tracks. He had grabbed her wrist.

"Sakura…"

"Let me go!" she screamed, landing a resounding punch on his face that made him topple.

He retaliated with a kick to one of her legs, and she landed roughly on her stomach. The air went out of her lungs, but she quickly regrouped and flipped him over her head. The ground crackled beneath him on impact.

"That's it," he growled, panting and wincing in pain. "Fight with me. Let's have it out, if that's what you need…"

"I don't need anything from you," Sakura cried, blinded by tears, her chakra flowing to her extremities in thick, overwhelming waves.

They launched themselves at each other, matching each blow with another one just as powerful and deadly. He moved with ghostlike stealth, but she was undoubtedly stronger. Yet despite his struggle, Sakura knew Sasuke was holding back. He was unarmed, of course, and she had mastered self-healing to the point where his Chidori would be useless. But one use of his Sharingan and she would be done for. It infuriated her all the more.

"You fucking bastard, why don't you just kill me now?" she cried as they stepped away from each other for a moment's respite, the dirt from the battered ground sticking to her wet cheeks. "You wouldn't have hesitated one second before doing it not so long ago – what's holding you back?"

"I see you don't hesitate to land blows with words too," Sasuke remarked wryly. "But it wouldn't be in my best interest to kill you, believe me."

The words cut through her insides like a blade. "Because of your precious jonin exam… You're even more revolting than I thought…"

Sasuke gave a little smirk. "Do you really believe that's the only reason?"

A shuriken whipped through the air. Sasuke stopped it with one hand just as it was about to wedge itself into his throat, and threw it back just as quickly. Sakura ducked but didn't see Sasuke coming as he threw her to the ground, pinning her under him.

"Get the hell off me!"

Panic was making her chest contract and trapping the air in her lungs.

"Will you listen to me now, Sakura?"

He was expecting another blow, Sharingans ablaze. She spit in his face. In the moment it took for the shock to subside, she broke out from his grasp and kicked him full force in the stomach, making him skid away from her and collide with the netting. She scrambled up while he struggled to get his breath back and wiped his face with the corner of his vest. But suddenly the world around her seemed to dissolve. All the colors faded out, and as far as she could see, there was nothing but a vast expanse of black ground and blood red sky.

_I'm trapped in his illusion_, she realized. _I can't go anywhere – do anything._

She was expecting some sort of torture – some form of pain. The last thing was expecting was a soft touch on the crook of her neck.

_Isn't this much more pleasant?_

Sasuke was standing right in front of her, like a shadow. He must have spoken the words, yet his mouth hadn't moved. She couldn't tear her gaze from his eyes, nor could she feel anything else than the spot of skin where his hand lay.

_I'm not a child anymore – and neither are you. I can see things so much clearly now… Things I could never see before…_

His eyes were boring into her. She tried to fight it, to struggle, but she was utterly helpless. Fear and alarm washed over her, but even more distressing was the sliver of pleasure insinuating itself inside of her.

_No – No, I can't let him see that… _

It grew stronger, more potent, creeping over her skin like a blush that she couldn't hold down. His hand traveled from her neck to the back of her head. It felt as though every breath she took was decupling the raw, compelling sensation he was causing.

_Sasuke… Please don't… _

_Why are you so afraid? Open yourself to me – let me reach out and…_

"Never!"

Reality came crashing back on her. The stars above her were spinning. She was on the ground. She couldn't tell if it had lasted for a minute or an hour. Sasuke was standing a little further away, breathing hard, his eyes dark again.

Sakura felt nauseous. The illusion of his touch had left a painless brand on her skin, as if it had been real.

"You disgust me," she said in a weak voice, shakily getting to her feet. "I suppose that gave you a good laugh… Well, I hope you enjoyed it…"

A flicker of protest passed through his gaze. "Sakura, that's not at all what I -"

"Don't ever come near me again," she said, hurrying towards the exit of the training ground.

As she walked through the streets of Konoha, sobbing quietly, Sakura willed herself to make sense of what had just happened. How could Sasuke have used his Sharingan to trap her in an illusion? Only to humiliate her a little bit more…

The only thing she could do was forget all about it, persuade herself it had never happened. Yet she knew that as soon as she would close her eyes that night, the picture of Sasuke standing so close to her would come back to her mind.


	11. The balcony

Hope you enjoy this chapter, I'm still unsure about Sasuke's characterisation. I've read some excellent stories where he's perfectly IC, so that makes me a bit worried :P Anyway, I'm leaving for the holidays for two weeks, so no update until I get back. But rest assured, I'll put the time off to good use.

Have a great Easter, everyone.

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It had been an hour since he'd gone to bed, yet sleep stubbornly eluded Sasuke. His mind was filled with tumult over what had just happened at the training ground. A couple of months ago, driven blind and mad by anger, kept from the truth by those who used him as a means to an end, he wouldn't have given it a second thought.

But now the memory of his brother, his role model, was his daily driving force. He knew what he had to do – restore the honor and greatness of the Uchiha clan, and earn the trust of the village once again.

It sounded so simple, and felt so tremendously complex. Most of the time, he felt like he was walking backwards instead of forward. Here he was, trying to atone from the harm he'd caused, trying to use his abilities for the greater good… and in a fit of impatience, he had all but mentally raped…

He turned around to face the wall, unwilling to speak her name even in his mind.

_Rape._ It was a brutally ugly word, he thought with a deep throb of shame. Ninjas killed; his own hands were stained with blood. Yet it was the first time he felt as if he'd done something indecent, unmentionable. It had never been his intention to harm her, or to humiliate her. He was simply trying to explain, but she just wouldn't listen, she had left him no other choice…

_Explain what, exactly?_ he asked himself. He had known from the start she wouldn't be reasoned into vouching for him and passing the jonin exam. As for his return to the village, she was fully aware of the fact he had saved Naruto's life, and that the two of them were once again on the way of forming an indestructible – and nearly invisible – team. But that wasn't the core of the problem – he wanted her to understand… to understand what he was thinking, what he was feeling.

Or at least try, as she had done so many times in the past.

The memory of the Sharingan's illusion came rushing back to his mind before he could stop it. Protected by the red and black shadows of the alternate reality, he too had admitted things he would never say to Sakura's face – things he wasn't sure he would admit to himself, when it came down to it. It had been so easy – so tempting… Having her helpless, feeling her quickening pulse against his fingertips, pressing against the soft vein of her neck…

And here he was starting again. What he had done was wrong, end of story. There was no excuse for it. Sasuke turned around again, tossing away the sheets with his legs. Even though it was the dead of night, the heat was suffocating. Or maybe it just felt that way to him.

Truth be told, he thought, unable to let go of his train of reflection, Sakura had always made his patience run short. When they were both much younger, it was easy to justify this with the way she acted around him, constantly making a bid for his attention in her jarring, artless way. But as time went on, it was impatience of a different kind – she distracted him, made him lose his focus on his revenge, on his anger. The same could be said, he supposed, about Naruto and Kakashi, but somehow with Sakura it was different. He didn't like thinking about her – he didn't like feeling like she was making him change. It made him tense, and he couldn't quite put his finger on why she had that effect on him.

Sasuke found himself recalling the day he left Konoha, and what he'd told her when she'd pleaded for him to stay with her. He had been annoyed by her attempt at swaying him – although perhaps that wasn't exactly the right word. _Restless _was more like it; he had wanted to get away. He didn't want to hear what she had to say, and when he had, it had stayed lodged somewhere inside, niggling at his thoughts at the most random moments, even when he seemed light years away from his former life.

And now that he was in her presence again… and that she fiercely resisted having anything to do with him, to the point where he could see her green eyes flashing with anger, and her lithe arms trembling with the sheer force of her chakra…

He looked up at the ceiling. The stuffy air of the room seemed to pin his limbs to the mattress. It was a possibility he loathed to consider, being who he was, but things were also considerably easier when girls had been nothing more than a bothersome presence at the academy he could've done without.

He had seen girls on the road, of course – women, even, in brothels and bars and market places. They were no different from the clueless, tittering genins who had tried to catch his attention back when he was barely more than a boy himself. They used crude strategies to seduce him, whether it be for his money or his tattered ninja garb or simply for his face, smoother and less frightening than the companions he traveled with, never realizing that he wasn't like other men. Karin had also made it quite clear that she was more than willing to cater to any desire he might have, without asking anything in return. All of this had only elicited an occasional stir of interest he had contemptuously pushed away.

But it wouldn't be pushed away now. It was insinuating itself in the deepest recesses of his body, and where it spread, he couldn't reach to rip it out.

He hated what was building up inside him – that febrile, almost palpable feeling that was making all his senses swell. He knew what Naruto would tell him – he would laugh and say that guys were just made like that. Of course, it was only natural, considering who had trained him. Naruto didn't see it as a weakness, just a sort of pleasant curse men had to deal with. But Sasuke desperately wanted to believe he was different. Surely he wasn't going to let himself be sidetracked by such base needs…

He groaned and buried his face in his hands. The more he tried not to think about it, the more the images he tried to keep at bay flashed through his mind. Muscles clenched and a kunai flashing through the air, a thin sheen of perspiration on pale skin, short breathes coming from in between her lips…

_Sasuke-kun… _

"Screw this," he muttered, getting out of bed. He needed some air.

Sasuke padded across the room and slid his glass door open. The night air wasn't very refreshing, but at least he didn't feel as if the walls were closing in on him anymore.

"Hey, what are you doing out?"

Sasuke turned to the adjacent balcony and was surprised to find Naruto sitting on a lean-back chair, wearing only his pyjama pants. His hair was a mess and he looked about as dazed as Sasuke felt.

"Couldn't sleep. Too many things on my mind," he replied, not really wanting to get into details. "What about you?"

"Same thing."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him. Apparently, he wasn't the only one keeping secrets. He wondered what Naruto's problem could possibly be.

"Did you talk to Sakura?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I tried. She won't listen."

Naruto looked wide-eyed at him. "Really? Well, did you remind her how important the jonin exam was? For all of us, I mean."

"The subject… deviated a little bit," Sasuke admitted reluctantly. "I don't think she'll change her mind, to be honest. She really does hate me."

Naruto waved his words away. "No, she's just being impossibly pig-headed, as always." He sighed. "I suppose the only thing left to do is to give it time."

"But we don't have time. Those exams are only in a few weeks."

"Listen, Sasuke, Sakura doesn't hate you. I think it's the just the opposite, in fact," he added with a sly smile.

"Because we all know how well you know how the female mind works," Sasuke said dryly.

Naruto became more serious, but he was still smiling. "You know, I may be a bit dim, and it did take me a while to figure it out, but take my word for it - that girl is never going to stop loving you."

Sasuke was surprised. Even though he had noticed the change in the way Naruto viewed Sakura, a part of himself still expected his friend to compete with him for her attention. And he certainly hadn't expected such a straightforward statement.

"I mean, look at me – my feelings for you never came apart all those years, did they?"

"That sounds a bit weird, honestly, coming from a guy."

"Come on, you get my drift," Naruto replied with a laugh. "There's no way Sakura's feelings could have changed either. And Kakashi thinks the same – she wouldn't react like that if she didn't… well…"

"They might now," Sasuke said. "I made a… mistake, of sorts."

Naruto sat up, dumbfounded. "What happened? Did you two fight?"

"She's fine, only – I don't know what got into me... I used the Sharingan on her."

There was a moment of silence. Sasuke could hear the crickets softly chirping all around them. It was such a peaceful night it was hard to believe all wasn't right with the world.

"I refuse to believe you used it to harm her," Naruto finally said, shaking his head fiercely. "It's just not possible."

Sasuke shifted from one foot to another, increasingly uncomfortable. "Well, we _were_ fighting, but I didn't want to hurt her, no…"

His friend seemed completely confused. "Sasuke, what are you talking about? Why did you use the Sharingan then?"

He hesitated. He wasn't sure putting into words would be such a good idea – least of all for himself. "I don't really know."

"Well, what type of illusion was it?"

Sasuke pressed his lips together. This was beyond embarrassing. He simply shook his head and hoped his friend was too tired to be as enquiring as he usually was.

"Well, whatever it was," Naruto said, looking as though he had a pretty good idea already, "you should tell her you're sorry. Admit you screwed up."

Sasuke remained silent. That had never been something any Uchiha had been good at, and it was proving downright impossible, in his case, when facing Sakura. "Like that's going to do any good," he said, nonplussed.

"Perhaps it won't, but at least you'll have tried. It'll be worse if you don't do anything at all. Besides… you're probably going to kill me for saying this, but are you entirely sure she didn't like it at all?"

Sasuke glared at him. This was no time for lewd jokes. But much to his shock, Naruto seemed serious.

His friend had come a long way from his boisterous attempts to win Sakura's esteem and affection, that much was clear. And the little girls who once had been flitting around them like butterflies were now powerful ninjas toughened by war. Even Ino, whom Sasuke remembered as particularly obnoxious and clingy, had barely acknowledged his presence since his return, entirely preoccupied with Choji's recovery.

None of them were playing games any more. That was what frightened him the most.

"I'm going to back to bed," he muttered.

"Sasuke, wait," Naruto exclaimed, standing up and leaning against the banister. "Kakashi-sempai told me something else – that a woman, when she's in love, only wants to hear one thing and one thing only. He wouldn't tell me what it was. But maybe you should -"

"No. I'm not going to take advice from someone who reads porn novels all day. And neither should you."

"Suit yourself, but you're going to have to figure something out eventually," Naruto called after him as he turned away.

Sasuke didn't bother to reply. It irritated him when Naruto was right, and spoke the truth directly to his face. He could hardly blame him for it, but…

He stared at his bed; he felt tired, but didn't want to sleep anymore than he had earlier. In fact, the idea of lying down in the messy sheets and waiting for it was downright abhorrent. But there was nothing else to do, nowhere else to go.

_Are you entirely sure she didn't like it at all?_

Sasuke screwed his eyes shut, as if it would somehow keep the memory away. He didn't want Sakura's love, he told himself firmly. He didn't want her fretting over him or healing his wounds or trying to make him happy. But there was something else thrown in the bargain now that was nearly irresistible, even for him.

He had felt it, there was hardly any doubt about it – her desire, only just a strand of it, winding itself softly around his perception. She had been rather good at keeping the rest of it down, in spite of the Sharingan. But she had been struggling hard.

Too weary to battle against himself anymore, Sasuke wondered, eyes still closed, what it would be like to feel all of it exude from her, unrestrained, and wash over him. It was so vivid in his mind he felt as if he could simply open his eyes and see her there, right next to him.

But Sakura wouldn't come, a part of him reasoned desperately. She'd made it perfectly clear that she didn't want anything to do with him anymore. And once the jonin exams would start, with or without them, their paths would likely part again.

_Unless you tell her what she wants to hear – the one and only thing she wants to hear_. _It's all a question of admitting what you really want…_

Sasuke hoped sleep would take him before he was forced to do it.


	12. The sake

Long time, no update, I know! It was hard to take time and get back into the story after returning from Easter vacation... But never fear, I have a few chapters written ahead, so the next update should come much quicker. Thanks to all those who reviewed :)

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"Naruto…"

The blond-haired ninja crinkled his nose. He vaguely felt something on his face – a fly, or a stray blade of grass. It brought him back from the light sleep that had dulled his senses and made his mind stray away to distance, unfathomable places.

"Naruto, get up, you lazy ass."

Naruto opened his eyes to find a huge pile of white fur right next to him – that's what had been tickling his nose. Akamaru looked down at him and gave a small whine, his master standing right next to him.

Naruto sat up and realised the sun was hanging lower above the horizon. He must have dozed off for quite some time. At first he'd just intended to take a little rest after practice, and the lush grass had been so inviting he hadn't been able to resist.

"What are you doing here?" he asked Kiba, brushing stray blades off his vest.

"Looking for you, what do you think," Kiba answered, rolling his eyes. "I've got exciting news – Shikamaru's back in town."

"Really? That's great!"

"So I thought it might be fun to get all the guys together – have a drink or two. What do you say?"

Naruto sat up, fully awake now. "Great idea. Who did you tell so far?"

"Shino, obviously, and Neji. Lee said he'd rather not be tempted by any alcoholic beverages." Kiba raised an eyebrow. "I thought you might – uh – ask Sasuke to come along."

"Oh." Naruto was relieved before he even had time to consider the problem. It would be the first time that Sasuke and the rest of their group would actually have a chance to interact since his return, and doing it over sake sounded like a good idea. "Sure, I'll do it."

"But first, there's someone else we need to invite."

Naruto followed Kiba back to the main street. Shino and Shikamaru were waiting for them, and Naruto noticed that like Shino, Shikamaru was starting to grow out a goatee. They looked more and more like their fathers… Naruto wondered if he, too, resembled the Fourth Hokage. His father. It was still a bit strange calling him that in his head.

He didn't get the feeling of having changed so much since he was a genin, even if he was certainly taller. He felt just as awkward and clumsy and helpless in the face of complications as he was back then. After all, he still hadn't figured out what exactly was going on with Hinata, and what he should do about it. He decided to save that thought for later.

"Shikamaru, it's good to have you back," he said, slapping his friend on the shoulder. "How did everything go in Suna?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "Well, the trip was a pain in the ass, as usual, and there were dinners to attend, and speeches to listen to…" He gave out a loud sigh. "All very boring."

"Surely not _all_ of it was," Kiba remarked slyly.

Shikamaru ignored him. "Anyway, I'm glad to be back. I was wondering how Choji was doing and all…" He scratched the back of his head.

"That's where we're headed, isn't it?" Shino said. "Let's go."

As they climbed up to the Akimichi clan's domain, Naruto couldn't help but feel a pang of apprehension. Choji had refused most visits while he was in the hospital, and the only time Naruto had managed to see him, accompanied by Sakura, he'd been a mere shadow of his former self. The nurses said he had hardly any appetite at all. He had lost a lot of weight, which made him look surprisingly unhealthy, and had barely spoken a word to them. It had taken a much harder toll on him than he'd expected, and Shikamaru was Choji's best friend - there was no telling how he'd react.

Choji's mother saw them coming up the path, and ran out to greet them.

"Oh, Shikamaru, I'm so happy you're back," she said, pressing him against her as if he was still a little boy. "It's been so terribly difficult here… but now it'll get better, I'm sure of it."

"I'm sorry I couldn't be here," Shikamaru replied. "I didn't have any choice, unfortunately. Where's Choji?"

"You'll find him out back," his father replied from the doorstep. "That's where he's been spending most of his time."

The four of them made their way around the house and to the rocky gardens that lay behind it.

"Choji and I used to hang out here all the time," Shikamaru said, leading them down a stony path. "It's a good place to practice - "

Shikamaru stopped in his tracks. Choji was there, but he wasn't alone.

"What's Ino doing here?" Kiba asked, squinting.

"I think they're practising," Shino said.

Indeed, it appeared that Ino was helping Choji with chakra control of some sort. His new arm was rather life-like, moulded in the right proportions and moving nimbly, but it gleamed like metal in the sun. Choji seemed to have gained a little weight back, at least, Naruto thought as he watched him make a fist and attempt to crush a medium-sized stone that had been placed in front of him.

"You have to let the chakra flow in your arm," Ino was saying. "Just do it like it was the old one."

"But it's not, Ino," Choji replied, his frustration evident. "It's heavier and – for crying out loud, I take the damn thing off when I go to sleep."

Ino placed a hand on his chest. "We've talked about this, you know you should keep it…"

"Choji! Ino!"

Kiba was waving at them, but Shikamaru frowned slightly at his intervention, as if he had been waiting for the rest of the scene to play out. In fact, Naruto realised, confused, he looked almost embarrassed.

"Shikamaru! You're back!" Ino cried, rushing up to him and giving him a quick hug. Choji stayed rooted on the spot, his expression unreadable.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here," Shikamaru pointed out. "I came to invite Choji out for drinks. What do you say?"

Choji seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then smiled and made his way to Shikamaru to greet him. "It's good to have you back."

"That's why we're celebrating," Naruto said. "So come on, we'll treat you and Shikamaru to dinner!"

"I don't know… I'm still a bit tired," Choji said, glancing towards Ino. "Besides, we were supposed to keep practicing."

"Oh, come on, you can take a night off," Ino said, nudging him. "I'm sure I'll come up with something to do on my own…" She winked at the group.

Choji scowled, but before he could say anything else, Shikamaru took him by the arm and dragged him away.

"Nobody's going to miss out on tonight," he said firmly. "Friend… former foe… we're all equal when we're drinking."

There was nothing to answer to that, Naruto thought as they started down again. He simply hoped Sasuke would see it the same way.

******************************

The least that could be said was that he was certainly trying, Naruto told himself, slamming his glass down on the table and wincing against the burning trail of liquid sliding down his throat. Sasuke had joined in every round, although so far he remained his usual quiet self.

Sasuke hadn't taken that much convincing to come, but it had certainly been awkward at first, especially since Neji had never hidden his aversion towards him. But Shikamaru, who Naruto was starting to think had genuine diplomatic skills, had fuelled the conversation with sufficient ease for everyone to calm down, and by the time they started talking about ninja training in Suna, the drinks had started to loosen tongues.

"Come on, you have to tell us," Kiba insisted, looking at Shikamaru. "What happened between you and Temari?"

"Stop pestering me," Shikamaru said, shaking his head. "I don't understand why you're so curious about this."

"Well, we always share advice and techniques when it comes to _fighting_," Neji pointed out as he served them all another round. "I don't see how this is any different."

"The peace and welfare of the village doesn't depend on it," Shikamaru replied.

Naruto grinned. "That's a matter of opinion. If the Kazekage's sister herself has a lover in Konoha…"

"Lovers? What are you talking about?"

"That's how you call two people who've had sex," Neji said flatly.

Naruto clinked his glass against his. "No, that's how you call two people in love."

"I agree with Naruto," Sasuke said. "Sex doesn't equate to lovers. There has to be something more than that."

"Perhaps you don't even need sex at all," Choji suggested. "Or else I'm in a lot of trouble..."

Kiba laughed. "Choji, what are you talking about? There are dozens of girls in this village who would be thrilled to nail a ninja, not to mention a war hero."

"I'm guessing you speak from experience?" Shino asked.

"A ninja, right," Choji muttered. "Some ninja I am now… I'm not even capable of crushing a pebble with this… this…"

Everyone seemed to have sobered up, listening to Choji's words.

"Give it time," Shikamaru said, rolling his glass in his hands. "Just give it time. And as for women, I mean…" He seemed uncomfortable with the subject.

Each one of them seemed lost in their thoughts. Finally, Choji started to hoist himself up, toppling slightly.

"I'm tired… I think I better go home."

"Wait, I'll come with you."

"No, no – this is your welcome home party, Shikamaru, you stay."

Shikamaru and Neji's eyes met, and Neji got up as well, helping Choji to his feet. "I'd better get going as well. Come on, man."

Once they were gone, Kiba served another round to lift spirits, and soon had to be taken home by Shino, who only seemed slightly deterred by the amount of alcohol he'd had. Naruto's head was already starting to spin, and he barely noticed their departure until he realised the noise level had gone down.

"Shikamaru, now that we're alone – almost," he painstakingly said, "you can admit what happened with Temari."

"Good grief…" Shikamaru downed another shot and made a face. "We did it. Okay? Are you happy?"

"Wasn't it too _troublesome_?" Naruto asked, smirking, and Sasuke gave a slight laugh.

"Extremely. It was messy and tiring and, well…" Shikamaru slumped against the wall, his gaze far off in the distance. "Sometimes you have to make amends."

"Make amends," Sasuke repeated. "That's an interesting way to put it."

"To life, I mean. You have to stop pretending you don't care about stuff, and just go out there and try to get what you want… Am I even making any sense?"

"I think you're absolutely right, Shikamaru," Naruto said. "In fact, I'm gonna – I'm gonna do that right now!"

"You idiot, you're in no state to do anything," Sasuke said.

"No, I'm serious," he replied, getting to his feet and gripping the edge of the table for support. It seemed to him that what he had to do simply could not wait until morning – then perhaps it would be too late. Besides, he had waited long enough, and he was tired of stirring the problem around in his mind. He needed an answer.

"For fuck's sake… Go with him, will you?"

"What about you?"

"I have some business to attend to myself."

Naruto frowned. What was Sasuke talking about? But before his mind could properly wrap itself around the question, Sasuke was already gone, and Shikamaru was helping him down the stairs of the izakaya. The warm summer air hit his face and made his head whirl.

"I can't believe… you banged Temari."

"Enough with that," Shikamaru complained. "Where the hell are we going?"

"We're going to… to… No, wait, she doesn't live there anymore. I got it! Kurenai-sempai's place."

"Are you mad? What do you want with Kurenai anyway?"

"Not her," Naruto said. "Hinata lives there now… I have to talk to Hinata."

"Hinata? I must have been away longer than I thought. Can't it wait until morning?"

"No. This is an urgent matter, very urgent. Kakashi-sensei told me so."

"Whatever, I'm too drunk to ask you what you're talking about. Everything is just so weird right now… I come back and my two teammates are making googly eyes at each other."

Naruto guffawed. "Choji and Ino? Are you kidding?"

"You saw them as well as I did… Choji's had a thing for her for awhile now, but I could just pretend it was nothing serious. But now, Ino looks like she's falling for him, and it feels like… like…"

"Like you can't do anything until they sort it out, and you're getting in the way, and you're afraid it's all going to change."

Shikamaru looked at him. "You're pretty lucid when you're hammered."

"Holy shit. There it is. Wait, wait, stop under her window. HINATA!"

"Naruto, will you shut the fuck up?" Shikamaru hissed. "You're going to wake the entire block."

"Hinata!" Naruto whispered. "Come to the window."

"Oh god, what a moron." Shikamaru picked up some pebbles and threw them against the glass pane.

"You have to throw them harder, or else she'll never hear!"

"Yeah, and break the damn thing? That's a wonderful idea. You're a ninja, why don't you just climb up there?"

"All right. Thanks for the advice. You don't have to wait for me, I'll get back home just fine."

"Yes, and make sure you do get back," Shikamaru said, rolling his eyes. "I don't want Sumei to wake up and see you passed out on the carpet in the living room, or asleep on the toilet bowl."

"Don't worry about me," Naruto said, giving him a thumbs-up and nearly tripping over the potted plants that surrounded the building.

The climb took longer than he thought it would. The gutter seemed to sway beneath him and he didn't quite remember which floor Kurenai's apartment was. He'd gone too far up and had to climb down two stories to finally land on the right balcony, where the poppies were. Everything was still and silent, and when he peaked through the bay window into the living room, he saw a familiar figure sleeping soundly on the couch bed, her dark hair spread out on the white pillows.

"Hinata," he murmured, giving a small knock on the window. "Hinata, wake up!"

She stirred, and he knocked harder. Finally, she opened her eyes with a start, scrambling to a sitting position as if she was fearing an intruder.

"Hi!" Naruto said, waving at her.

Hinata stared at him and closed her eyes again briefly, then quickly got up and opened the bay window to join him on balcony. She was wearing only a large t-shirt and Naruto's senses stirred with her proximity to him.

"Naruto-kun, what are you doing here?"

"I need to know…" He tried to concentrate, but the alcohol and Hinata's bare legs were making it hard to focus on anything else. "I need to know if you like me."

"What?" she squealed.

"Do you like me, Hinata?"

Even in the moonlight, Naruto could tell she was blushing. "Yes, I mean… Of course I do," she mumbled, looking down at her feet. "You're a good friend, and a wonderful ninja, and… wait a minute, why are you asking me this?"

"No, I mean, do you like-_like_ me? For example, if I… if I tried to put my hand on your leg, would you let me?"

Hinata took a step back, alarmed. "Naruto-kun… are you sure you're feeling alright? You're not making any sense. I think you should go home and get some rest."

"No, Hinata, please… I've been thinking about this all week. I want to know how you feel about me."

Hinata bit her lip and looked at him warily. "It doesn't really matter now, anyway. Your heart belongs to someone else, and I'm not even sure you'll remember this tomorrow, but me… I've admired you, and cared for you, for so many years, just waiting for you to look my way and notice me. But now I'm done waiting." Her eyes filled with tears. "I – I'm in love with you and I can't help it, but I have to move on, and – Naruto-kun, what are you doing?"

He pushed a strand of hair away from her face, leaning in closer. Her words were like warm syrup pouring over him, and her lips were mesmerising. "I want to kiss you."

"Naruto, no, you're not thinking straight. Stop it!"

"But, Hinata-chan…"

"Don't. Please," she whispered. A tear rolled down her cheek. "Just go away."

"I don't understand… Why?"

"Because I won't be able to bear it when you realise tomorrow that this was all a mistake."

And with that, she turned around and ran back inside, closing the bay window behind her. Naruto stayed dumbfounded for a moment before he realised there was nothing left for him to do but leave. The way down felt much longer.


	13. The heir

**Warning:** this is where the naughty stuff begins. The chapter also contains some measure of slightly dubious consent, just so you know.

I've been really bad at updating quickly for many RL reasons, so please do forgive me. I intend on posting one more chapter before July 5th, then I'm leaving for vacation until the 26th. I also have the story mapped out and it's going to be about seven more chapters. I'm really touched that I passed the 100-review mark (and surprised, since I read the reviews in my inbox and didn't exactly keep count). Feedback from readers is the best reward anyone could ask for when writing a story, fanfic or otherwise.

**********************************

Sakura sat on the couch with in jeans shorts and a tee-shirt, a glass of cool water in hand. After working all day and a short training session afterwards, she had told herself an early night in would do her good. Only she was feeling particularly restless, and nothing seemed to be able to hold her attention for very long before her mind started slipping elsewhere. She tried not to wonder what Naruto and Sasuke were doing that night – if they were even doing anything… Perhaps they were both at home resting as well. Perhaps Sasuke was asleep by now – breathing softly in his bed, his skin bathing in the soft moonlight, his covers thrown back…

Sakura shook her head. This wasn't doing her any good. But ever since their fight, and what had ensued, it was like Sasuke had tied a small piece of string around her stomach, and that it was tugging there at will, enticing her to think back on the desire he had awoken in her that night, against her will. She sighed and told herself to ignore it, switching on the television in a fruitless attempt to distract herself.

After awhile, her eyelids began to droop and she drifted off, until a sharp noise wrenched her away from her oblivion. In her confusion, she thought it was the television, but the sound was coming from outside. She switched off the set. Someone was knocking on the door.

"Who is it?" she called wearily, getting up.

"It's me."

Sakura froze. What was Sasuke doing here, and so late?

"Is Naruto with you?" she asked hesitantly.

"No. This is none of his business."

"Then I'm not letting you in. I don't trust you."

"Sakura – _open_," the voice came from the other side. Still calm, but commanding. He had never taken refusal kindly.

"Go away," she said in a shaky voice.

There was a moment of silence, then the loud bang of a fist smashing against the door.

"Goddamnit, Sakura!" he snarled. "Open this door or I swear I'll break it down."

She wrenched it open in alarm. With all the noise he was making, the neighbors were sure to hear.

"What the _fuck_ is wrong with you?" she whispered hoarsely, dragging him inside. "Have you gone totally crazy?"

She turned away from him and started down the hall, Sasuke on her heels, so close she could almost feel his hot breath on her neck. Her heart lurched. His presence was so intoxicating it made her dizzy, and she had to inhale deeply just to calm herself down.

"Look at me," he hissed. "Turn around and look at me."

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut. "I don't want you here – I don't want you anywhere near me… And I certainly won't give you another chance to use your -"

He brutally grabbed her shoulder and made her spin around to face him. "Is that what I am to you? A monster? Is that why you won't hear anything I have to say?"

His eyes plunged into hers, still dark, but nonetheless they seemed to reach into her very core, making her unable to move. She could smell the faint, tangy aroma of liquor in his breath, and dread coiled around her spine.

"Sasuke, you're drunk," she said, trembling and backing away from him. "You don't know what you're doing anymore. Just go home and - "

"I know perfectly well what I'm doing," he said in a quiet voice, which was somehow more alarming than when he yelled. He was forcing her to step back again, and her fingertips brushed the wall behind her. "I'm going to have you listen to every word I have to say, even if I have to strap you down on the floor so you won't move."

Sakura swallowed hard. He terrified her – fascinated her. How could such beautiful features, such perfection mastered into a brood of ennui, be the face of a murderer? And why was she the only one to still see it? Sasuke was dangerous, more dangerous than any of the enemies they'd fought…

But perhaps it was because he was only a danger to _her_. Here she was, nearly pinned up against the wall, and incapable of fighting back. What was it about him that rendered her so completely helpless?

"If you touch me," she croaked, with every bit of determination she could muster, "I swear you'll regret it."

"Are you sure about that?" he asked, grabbing her wrist and slapping it against the wall. She winced in pain.

"Sasuke, don't," she pleaded. "If Naruto hears about this – if he hears, he'll be crushed…"

"He won't," Sasuke said, his touch suddenly softer and moving up to stroke the center of her palm. "Because you won't tell him."

Sakura nearly gasped. This was by far a greater shock than his harsh words and brusque movements. Sasuke's fingers… They were coaxing her, caressing her wrist, and the sensation was so rousing she had to bite her lip to hold back the moan that was building up somewhere deep in her chest.

"I _will_ tell him," she insisted, trying desperately to break free from the pull that was weaving itself into her core. "He needs to know the truth…"

"The truth… you mean…" He looked at her with the trace of a smirk twitching on his lips. "… how much you're enjoying this?"

He dug his knee between her legs, forcing them to part. Sakura gasped sharply at the sensation of his muscular thigh pressed so intimately against her.

"You would've already stopped me if you had really wanted to," he stated, slowly releasing her wrist and dragging his hand down her arm. "A real kunoichi… A woman…" He punctuated his words with a sharp squeeze to her breast. "I know exactly what you need. Why don't you let me give it to you?"

His tone was detached and bland, but she could feel the restiveness in his touch. And Sakura of all people knew that Sasuke didn't ask for anything before taking it.

"Please, Sasuke…" Her own voice sounded tiny and far away, and from where she was she couldn't figure out if it was asking him to stop, or begging him to go on.

Sasuke took no heed of her pleading and shoved his hand in her hair, gripping it tightly, making her tilt her head to the side and expose her neck. His lips barely touched her skin as they trailed down to her collarbone – light and smooth, and all of a sudden yielding to his tongue. Her breath hitched dangerously as she felt the hot wetness there. Before she could stop herself, she started to imagine his mouth working elsewhere – on her own mouth, the flat plane between her breasts, her stomach, the aching juncture of her thighs…

Sasuke let out a muffled groan as he pressed himself harder against her. She could feel him fully now, dense and unyielding, and the sensation sent an abrupt throb coursing through her body.

"There," he uttered huskily. "Don't fight it."

It was more of an order than a suggestion. Before she could even reply, he released her hair only to tug unceremoniously at the fabric of her shirt. The cloth ripped and Sakura felt her cheeks burn with shame as she found herself exposed to his view. He considered the plain cotton of her bra for a moment then thrust one of the cups down with one hand, giving it no more consideration than her top.

Sakura felt like she was going to die – of humiliation or yearning, she didn't know which. Sasuke fondled the mound of flesh tauntingly, brushing his thumb over the sensitive peak, without saying a word. His hips were grinding relentlessly into hers, and his breathing was hard and labored in her ear.

When she felt his hand move down from her breast to the belt of her shorts, fumbling for the top button, Sakura's eyes shot open. Yes, she was ready – ready, willing and burning for him to give her more, everything. But he was going to take her there, she realized – right then and there, against the wall of her own corridor, messily, roughly, without so much as a kiss… She let out a small whimper of anguish.

Sasuke stopped and moved back to look at her, still panting, and she thought she could see something like pain written on his face. Pain or disgust.

"Sakura…"

Their eyes stayed locked for a moment, then he withdrew himself without warning and turned away from her.

"God, what I am doing…" he mumbled, bringing his hand to his forehead.

Sakura tried to cover herself again as best she could, shaking so badly she had to stay propped against the wall for support.

"I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry," Sasuke said flatly, as if the words weren't coming from him at all. "For everything I did. I know you won't forgive me easily, but please think of the team, and the village."

No, these words weren't his. They were Naruto's – well-meaning, kind, magnanimous Naruto, who just couldn't understand why the two people he cherished most in the world were acting this way towards each other. Who had no idea that in spite of it all they'd just been about to give in to unbridled frenzy that without appeasing anything in their minds. How had it come to this?

"I hate you," she whispered, her fists tightening with anger. But even as she said it, she understood it would only make it all the more clear to Sasuke that she still loved him – that she had never stopped loving him. Tears spilled from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

She felt him pass behind her, heading towards the door.

"I never could, no matter how hard I tried," he said. "Not you."

Sakura looked up and whirled around, but the door had already slammed shut. Sasuke was gone, leaving her to wonder if she'd heard right, or if she'd simply been dreaming.

******************************

"So he left, just like that?"

Sakura twisted her mouth. She squinted against the hard glare of the sun, but it was better than looking directly at Ino. She wasn't sure she wanted to see the expression on her friend's face, and she hadn't even included the more grisly details of that particular episode.

She'd spent a tortuous night after Sasuke's departure. She hadn't gotten much rest at all, it seemed, even though she'd sank into an uncomfortable sleep as soon as she'd laid down on the mattress. The same dream had kept coming back to her mind – a warped memory of herself, Naruto and Sasuke when they were genin, walking through the forest. She was always behind, and whenever she managed to catch up, she would wake, fretfully, and the dream would start up again.

It was only when the murky daylight filtered through her blinds that she had woken up for good.

She'd left her apartment early, probably looking like a fright, but she couldn't stand to stay inside anymore. On the way, she had found her wandering steps leading her to Ino's place. No coincidence, really – if she didn't talk to someone about all this, she would end up going crazy.

"That's about it, yeah."

Sakura had never been one to confide much in other people, because there never really had been anyone around who fit the part. There had been an early stage of bold loudness, then a more subdued one, as she grew, of restraint and diligent efforts of ridding herself of anything that might qualify as a secret in the first place.

Yet what was happening with Sasuke was impossible to get rid of. She knew him, and he hadn't changed all that much. He always flared up when faced with a challenge, and whether or not the adverse party wanted to fight made no difference. This was just like the time he had wanted to beat Naruto in single combat, only with Sakura he was using different weapons.

Ino raised an eyebrow and leaned over the edge of the terrace where they were sitting. "Sounds to me like he's still stuck on you."

"What do you mean, _still_? He never was in the first place."

"Please. Sasuke never really treated you like he treated the rest of us – I mean, maybe when we were just kids, but after that... He was being so defensive, like he was trying not to crack."

"He always acted like that, and not just with me," Sakura countered, bringing her knees up to her chest.

"Well, I'd be willing to bet he doesn't act like he did last night with _anyone_ but you," Ino pointed out, a bit teasingly. "But what do you feel anyway? Don't try to tell me you don't care about him."

"I do, Ino. I do. He drives me crazy just like he did before and I hate it! I hate that I haven't changed."

"Sakura, you did, that's the thing. Don't you get it? Sasuke's cracked, finally. So let him scratch that itch and have him at your mercy."

"It would only turn out to be the other way around, as always. And besides," Sakura said, straightening herself, "I want to believe I still have a little self-restraint. I'm a ninja, after all."

Ino rolled her eyes. "Like that has anything to do with it – remember Master Jiraiya? But if you want advice on self-restraint, I think you had better ask Hinata than me."

Sakura looked sideways at her. "Ino… are you… who are you seeing right now that I'm not aware of? Don't tell me you and Choji…"

"Choji's different."

She had been her old self for a moment, and now she was hardening up again. Sakura knew better than to press the subject. But one look in Ino's eyes and she could tell the real story. She wondered how Shikamaru was going to deal with this, but he probably wouldn't like it too much.

After she'd taken her leave from Ino, Sakura hurried to the Hokage's residence, where she was informed that she was wanted immediately in the Hokage's office. Tsunade was waiting for her, drinking some green tea with her pet pig on her lap. Sakura supposed that she was going to give her a pile of paperwork to handle, as always, but Tsunade looked like she was in no hurry, for once.

"Sakura, sit down," she told her. "And have some tea."

No, this was definitely not about paperwork. Sakura was growing a bit wary. Was the Hokage going to ask her to place a large amount of money in some fishy gamble again? She knew Sakura strongly disapproved of it, and always tried to break the news gently.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?"

"I called you up this morning, because I want us to discuss your schedule, since you're going to be away for awhile."

"Are you… sending me on a mission?" Sakura asked, a bit confused.

"No. But the jonin exams are soon and you'll need some time to train."

Sakura pressed her lips together. She thought she had made it quite clear that she wasn't going to sign up, and here was her very own master, twisting her arm. All for the sake of the Uchiha heir, no doubt.

"I think you're handling the problem backwards, Sakura," the Hokage said, as if she could read her mind as clear as day. "I don't want you to take those exams for Sasuke's sake – I don't want Sasuke to keep you from becoming a jonin."

Sakura looked down at her hands. She felt her heart wring painfully in her chest.

"Being a kunoichi isn't easy – in some ways it's harder than being a male ninja. It takes more strength – more determination. And more sacrifices, the case being, because not many women have what it takes to be a lover, a mother and a warrior all at once. But I always thought you were one of those women, Sakura. Your feelings give you strength, and the fear of losing someone you love has never crippled you. Of course, it's always a bit more… complex when you're dealing with a man – with _your_ man." Tsunade gave a little smile. "But don't let that cripple you either. Stay focused on what's best for your future. I'd say for the village as well, but… what's really important right now is what _you_ want."

Sakura knew what she wanted – it had been there for so long, since she was a child, that it was an almost indistinctive part of herself, smoothed out over everything else. She wanted to be the strongest kunoichi she could be, without any compromises.

Of course, Sasuke wasn't exactly a compromise… and she wanted him as well. She wanted him so much it hurt just to think of it, a deep, dull throb, like a sickness with no way to curb the symptoms. She wanted him so much that the first realization that came with morning, when she woke up, was the fact that he still wasn't hers, that she was still alone.

But she wasn't going to let it pin her down. Nor would she remain helpless and anxious like she had been the night before.

"I want to become a jonin," she said finally. "I do. As a ninja, I should put the welfare of Konoha before everything else… I don't know why I was so foolish."

Tsunade gave a small smile. "Well, take the day to think it through, but… that's what I would do, in your place. Not that it should mean anything, although we are rather alike, you and I, aren't we? You're like my heir, in a sense."

A blush came to Sakura's cheeks. Being told something like this by the Hokage herself was no small thing. Lady Tsunade's heir… All remaining doubt flew from her mind.

"Thank you, shishou," she said, smiling as she got up.

Naruto would be pleased with her change of heart as well, she thought as she left the office. For her, of course, but for Sasuke first, as always. She wondered if there would ever be anyone in his life that would matter more than his best friend, and the memory of them training together came back to her mind with a pang of bitter envy.

But she would be strong now. She wouldn't let any man, friend or… something else, weaken her determination. And for that matter, Sakura thought, she didn't see why Ino and Hinata shouldn't be the first to hear about her decision. They had been faithful companions, after all… and they might be a little more understanding about other issues as well.


	14. The hallway

Hey all! Sorry this is so short, but it's all I had time to write... There will be updates this summer, though, starting July 26th. Have a great summer holiday, the case being, and stay away from the heat ;)

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Hinata brushed her long, damp hair, wincing when her comb snagged on a tangle. When she was done, she patted the dark locks with her towel, looking at herself in the mirror while she did. She was looking better, she decided – less tired. And the long hours spent outside practicing in the sun were definitely giving her a rosy complexion.

Ever since Sakura had told her and Ino about her plans to pass the jonins exams, they had been exercising together. It was unusual, and unexpected, to say the least. She and Sakura got along well, but they hadn't had that many chances to grow closer as friends. Besides, Hinata had always been slightly intimidated, to say nothing of the burning envy she felt despite herself. Sakura was the girl Naruto had always loved, ever since they were children.

Hinata sighed. Not that there was any surprise there – Sakura had always been popular with boys, so effortlessly lovely and outgoing as she was. Now she was stronger than most of them as well. Tsunade's apprentice – how was Hinata supposed to compete with that?

She slipped on a tank top and shorts and left the bathroom, feeling limp and exhausted from exerting herself in the boiling heat. But they couldn't afford to miss one day of practice, and Sakura had begged her and Ino to help her make up for the time she'd lost.

And help her get her mind off Sasuke too, Hinata thought. Sakura hadn't explained to Hinata what had happened between them, but from what she could piece together with Ino's non-too-subtle hints, there was definitely something.

Hinata blushed. That fateful night three days past came back to her mind in a flash. She hadn't dared tell anyone about it, not even Kurenai, as if telling would somehow make it less real. And yet nothing had really happened, she reasoned, her heart giving a little lurch.

As she was exiting the bathroom, she heard the front door of Kurenai's apartment open. And there was Sumei's happy voice… but he wasn't alone.

"I hate it when the park is crowded like that. All those children shouting give me a headache."

It was Shikamaru, taking Sumei back from an afternoon out. He had readily accepted to take care of him while Kurenai spent the afternoon at the Academy. All of his friends knew Shikamaru was always complaining about something or other, but he was never reluctant to look after his godson.

"Aw, come on, it was fun. I really feel like a kid myself when I go there, expect I'm too big for the swings now."

Hinata froze. She had never mistaken Naruto's voice for anyone else's. What was he doing here?

"Well, thanks for offering to keep me company," Shikamaru said in a slightly suspicious tone. "And walking back with me."

"Yeah, I guess I just felt like… talking, you know?"

"About what?"

Hinata tried to calm the hammering of her heart inside her chest. She couldn't leave the hallway – she couldn't face Naruto. She was too ashamed of what had happened, and she was certain coming out to greet him would only make him embarrassed. He wouldn't know what to say to her after his baffling outburst, and good-natured as he was, he would probably try to offer an explanation, which would make things even worse.

"I've been feeling really bummed – I still can't believe Sakura didn't tell me about the exams! And that I had to learn from you. No offense, but that's just weird. I can't understand why she's acting so cold."

His mind was still preoccupied with Sakura, then. Hinata looked down at her feet. The sameness of her life, despite everything that was going on around her, was absolutely depressing. It almost angered her to feel so helpless. She'd left her father's home, and yet she was still as desperate as ever where Naruto was concerned.

"Don't try to make sense of it," Shikamaru said while Sumei knocked down some building blocks. "Ow! Watch my foot. Most of the time, there's no other reason for a woman's doing than driving a man completely insane. That's just the way they are. For example…" He gave a great sigh. "I trust you're not going to blab about this like a girl?"

"You can count on me, man."

"Okay. The other day, I dropped by Choji's house again, and Ino was there… _again_."

"So, what's the big deal? She's just helping him out."

"Yes, I guess you could call it that," Shikamaru said flatly. "When I walked in on them, she was busy teaching him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation."

Naruto gave a little laugh. "Are you joking? Ino and _Choji_?"

"Look, no one is more surprised than me here, expect I'm not at all surprised. They've been dancing in circles around each other for months. But still, it's not something I'd care to see again."

Hinata could barely contain her amazement. Ino hadn't said anything about kissing Choji, and she was usually so expansive on her love life… This was definitely news.

"Tell me about it. If I walked in on Sakura and Sasuke, I think I'd gouge my eyes out."

"Better get used to the idea."

"But we're a team – and Sasuke's my best friend. What am I supposed to do if they start dating?"

"Don't worry. Uchihas don't date – they just command and obtain."

"Shut up…"

Shikamaru groaned as he stretched out on the couch. "Besides, you have your problems to worry about, if my calculations are correct. What exactly happened here the other night?"

"Nothing," Naruto replied gruffly, "that is any of your business."

"Go tell that sorry tale to someone else," Shikamaru said in a bored voice. "So… you and Hinata?"

"No!"

She had nearly stopped breathing. This was too much. She couldn't stand the idea of simply waiting there, listening to Naruto state flat out that he didn't care about her.

"I mean… To tell the truth, I acted like a complete moron that night. It was a big mistake."

That was more than too much. Hinata sank down to the ground, tears wetting her eyelashes and blurring the wall in front of her. She wanted to scream, to cover her ears, to make it stop, but she couldn't. She could never stop when it came to Naruto. In a sense, he was her worse enemy.

"We've been known to do some pretty stupid things when we're drunk," Shikamaru pointed out. "Or sober, for that matter."

"Yeah, but I feel like I blew it. I can't even remember what she said exactly, but I do remember that she wanted me to leave and… well, the thing is, I can't stop thinking about her."

The wall went from blurry to toppling. But very much there – it was like the moment was tangible to the extreme, with those words floating in the air. Hinata wished she could rewind and repeat.

"I wouldn't trouble myself if I were you," Shikamaru said. "If a woman really wants a man, she'll take charge eventually."

Naruto snorted. "Well, maybe Temari broke the door down to get into bed with you, but Hinata's not like that."

"So your problem has no solution. You're obviously never going to make the first move, not that I blame you. First of all, she's a Hyuuga with a dangerous father and an even more dangerous cousin, and second, you acted like a total ass the last time you two interacted."

"You're supposed to be helping me here."

Little feet padded on the carpet. "Hey, Sumei, where are you going?"

With a strange feeling of dread, Hinata turned to find Sumei in the hallway, looking straight at her.

"Hina-chan!"

She scrambled to her feet, her cheeks burning, and looked around to find a hiding place. But there were none – Naruto and Shikamaru had already heard him.

Hinata decided it might be best to feign surprise. She walked in the living room, hoping her legs didn't look as wobbly as they felt.

Naruto had the grace to look as flustered as she was.

"Hey," she said in a cheery voice. "I didn't know you were here, I just… I just got out of the shower. I mean, I dressed, obviously, but…"

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. She took a shaky breath. This was not going well.

"Well, I have to go – um – meet… Kiba."

She had said the first name that had come to mind. Naruto frowned. "Kiba?"

"Yeah, he asked me to… um… train with him. You know, we thought it would be good to practice tracking at night, since it's… dark. Well, bye!"

Hinata rushed out of the front door, squeezing her eyes shut as soon as she was outside. Out of all the mortifying moments in her life, this had been the worse, in recent memory. And now she had to find a way to occupy herself until Kurenai returned and Shikamaru left, with his suspicions in tow.

But that had never really been the problem, she thought at she rushed down the outside stairs to the ground floor. Everything she had heard, she simply couldn't keep to herself. It was time to tell Sakura and Ino about it, ask for advice… and perhaps get a few answers.

The way Shikamaru talked about women was annoying, but she had to admit he wasn't completely wrong. And it was time for her to take charge... the best she knew how, at least.


	15. The plunge

Author's note: I hope all of you are having a great summer. To thank you for your patience, an InoChoji one-shot should be posted this weekend (re: the story behind what Shikamaru saw...) Meanwhile, enjoy a healthy dose of SasuSaku goodness!

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"Well, I don't see much choice in the matter." Ino said gravely, as if she was planning a battle, and pushed her fringe away from her eyes. "You're just going to have to go for it, Hinata."

Hinata blushed and shook her head frantically. "No way! I can't do that – he'll turn me down, or… or laugh at me."

Ino gave an exasperated sigh. "For fuck's sake, you heard him tell Shikamaru he thinks about you all the time, what more do you need?"

"Lower your voice, someone might hear you…"

"We're in the middle of the forest, and you're not answering my question."

"Maybe it's just a phase that won't last," Hinata said desperately. "Maybe he's just bored, or -"

"Now you're just making up stupid excuses. Isn't she, Sakura?"

Sakura let her head fall back against the rough bark of the tree that was digging in her back. Of course, Ino was right, but who was she to give Hinata any lessons on the matter? She'd been spending so much time making up excuses to avoid Sasuke, it was a wonder she had time for anything else.

"You know it's not that easy," she replied. "Haven't you ever been afraid of being rejected?"

Ino scowled. "That's besides the point. Hinata already knows that Naruto likes her…"

"And how exactly would you proceed to seduce someone like him?" Sakura asked, slightly annoyed. "When he's not training with Sasuke, or talking about Sasuke, he has the attention span of a puppy."

Hinata glanced at her warily. Sakura suddenly felt guilty – she definitely wasn't helping her, and the situation was complicated enough as it was. It was no secret for anyone in Konoha that Hinata had been smitten with him for years, without Naruto taking any note of her affection.

"But I might be mistaken," she added hastily. "I mean, I never thought about what it would take to get his attention…"

Ino shot her a look. A look that said: _You idiot, you didn't need to_. Sakura bit her lip, realizing she was only making matters worse.

"Hinata, listen," she started again, taking a deep breath. "Whatever feelings Naruto had for me, it was a long time ago, and we were so young… it was never anything more than a silly crush. And I'm sure he never tortured himself as much over it as he's doing now. You know that, right?"

Hinata didn't reply, but the look on her face reflected the turmoil going on in her mind.

"Ugh, sometimes I tell myself we would be much better off without men in our lives," Ino said, flopping down in the grass. "I mean, look at us, wasting all that time and energy trying to figure out what they feel, what they want… We should just focus on what _we_ want." She sat up again, her eyes gleaming with renewed determination. "Hinata, you want Naruto, don't you?"

Hinata's cheeks grew even redder. "I – I…." She swallowed and gave a slight frown. "Yes, I do."

"Well then, there isn't a moment to lose. If you don't act now, you might miss your chance, and then you'll regret it forever."

Hinata nodded firmly. "You're right. I won't wait around anymore. I'll – I'll get what I want."

"That's the spirit!" Ino exclaimed. "Besides, Naruto may be a powerful ninja and all that, but he is first and foremost a man… You shouldn't have too much trouble finding a way to make him respond to you…"

For some reason, she had finished her sentence looking not at Hinata, but at Sakura.

Sakura closed her eyes. She knew exactly what Ino was thinking – that she should go ahead and make her own move on Sasuke.

She felt the familiar weight coming back on her shoulders, pressing down on her body – it had been nearly relentless since the night he had come to her place. She was still angry, angry and unsatisfied and a tiny bit regretful, even though she hated to admit it. And doing everything in her power not to be in his presence wasn't making things better – she felt like a mouse hiding from a cat.

On the other hand, confronting him would lead to nothing, she reasoned. Or perhaps she should simply act as if nothing had happened? Or better yet, as if the last seven years hadn't existed…

As Ino continued to brief Hinata over every possible attack angle, Sakura let her mind wander. There clearly was no solution to the problem, and she was getting tired of trying to find one. Their relationship would never mend, because she was in love with him, and he was… well, he was Sasuke. So if everything was past the point of resolution, why was she still bothering with restraining herself? What was keeping her from throwing all caution to the wind? She felt it in her members, in her movements, in the way her breath caught, faster and harder than usual – the tension was pegging her down, winding inside her, and it needed release, somehow.

"Catch him off-guard, but make him believe you're just following his lead – men love it when they think they're in control, which they rarely are, by the way."

Ino's theory was certainly worth testing, Sakura thought after she had taken leave from her two friends. But all that scheming and pretense simply wouldn't work on Sasuke. As she slowly made her way back to the village, Sakura wondered what exactly it would take for him to stop and take her into account, if only for a little while.

After all, how could she be sure he would? She didn't know if what had happened between them could count for anything – the first time, he was spurred on by the fight, and the second time… But then again, there were more ways than one to make a man lose his cool. And a powerful ninja was first and foremost a man, as Ino had pointed out.

Besides, she had something in her possession that she didn't have before, she reminded herself to soothe her apprehension: the knowledge that Sasuke wasn't always in control, especially around her.

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"Look, I got a letter this morning – you must have gotten it too, it's for the exam!"

Naruto waved a sheet of paper in front of Sasuke eyes, looking very excited. He put it down next to his bowl of ramen and broke his chopsticks off, grinning.

"I got the same," Sasuke replied evenly. "No surprise, they must've sent it to every candidate."

"This is great – we're leaving in three days! I can't wait to start, I feel like I'm at the top of my game."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Naruto was in great shape, true, but he seemed distracted, and sometimes even lost in his thoughts. For such a difficult exam, concentration and focus were indispensable.

"Since there's a chance we're going to be paired up, allow me to give you a piece of advice," he said. "Try to keep your girl problems out of your mind until we get back."

Naruto nearly choked on his noodles. "Girl problems? I don't have girl problems," he protested.

"Call it whatever you want," Sasuke continued, oblivious, "but you'll have all the time in the world to seal the deal with Hinata Hyuuga _after_ we do this."

"Stop making me feel like some sort of pervert," Naruto said, rolling his eyes dismissively even though a slightly blush was creeping up his neck. "You should know that not everyone is as pure and detached from earthly pleasures as Sasuke Uchiha."

It was Sasuke's turn to feel slightly embarrassed. If only Naruto knew what had happened the other night… What had he been thinking? He hadn't been thinking at all, if he was perfectly honest with himself. Of course, the alcohol had a lot to do with it, but he hadn't been so drunk as to forget what he had done, and said.

_Hypocrite_, he berated himself. There he was, telling Naruto to get his mind off of girls, and now he was thinking back on that evening…

_It won't happen again_, he told himself firmly. _It was just an accident. It doesn't change anything. _

"Sasuke, is everything all right?"

"Huh?"

Naruto snickered, clearly enjoying his revenge. "Daydreaming again, huh?"

"Piss off," he grumbled.

That afternoon, after exercising for several long, grueling hours in the sun, Sasuke headed to the Uchiha domain. It had been left to the care of the village after the tragedy and had slowly been falling into disrepair ever since. However, he was now old enough to inherit it and the property had been transferred to his name, not without some protest from the elders.

He'd been seeing a team of workers in view of restoring the domain to its original grandeur. Of course, he wasn't going to live there alone, but the complete renovation would take several years anyway, and by that time…

"You'll start with the main building," he told the head of the construction team. "A fresh coat of paint, of course, and I'll need the woodwork to be completely redone. The termites and humidity got to it, so I don't want to take any chances."

The man bowed, assuring him that the deadline would be met. The name of Uchiha, although linked with Sasuke and Itachi's fearsome reputations, still elicited some respect in Konoha.

Sasuke looked on at the empty house. It was still a pitiful sight, but it no longer gave him such an acute feeling of despair. Itachi had sacrificed his life so that the Uchiha clan could live on, and this is where it would happen. Sasuke could picture it in every detail – the splendid rock gardens, the tall, proud pagodas, the training court where every ninja in the village would be honored to practice…

He had a much harder time picturing who, exactly, would live there. Himself, he supposed, but he had never foreseen his future as anything else but lonely.

After he was done, Sasuke didn't feel like going home. With the vague intent of getting some dinner, he returned to the main street of Konoha. It was almost eight o'clock and it seemed like the entire town was out on the pavement, strolling along and enjoying the beginning of a pleasant summer evening.

As he passed, a group of young teenage girls broke out in giggles and admiring glances. It annoyed him and troubled him all at once, reminding him of the time he had spent on the road, in distant lands, just an anonymous ninja with tattered clothes and a comely face. And here in Konoha, where everyone knew who he was, the suspicious whispers were slowly disappearing. He was becoming someone again.

His footsteps led him away from the agitation of the streets and back to Team Seven's old training ground, with the three logs still in place. So much had happened since then, and yet they hadn't moved a bit… Sasuke leaned against one of them, watching the sun sink down in the horizon.

"Funny meeting you here."

He forced himself not to turn around. It almost wasn't a surprise that Sakura was there, since she was so present already in the memories he had of this place. Still, it didn't make him any less suspicious of her intentions.

"Did you follow me?"

"I was returning from the field, and I saw you coming here," she replied simply.

"Did you come to fight?" he asked, brushing the pommel of his katana with his fingertips, as if to reassure himself.

Sakura stayed silent, and he turned around. She was wearing the same practice clothes as ever, but her green eyes were like two glinting jewels, and her pink hair seemed darker in the blood-red hue of the fading sunlight. She had never needed any excess apparel to look attractive - it occurred to Sasuke that it was something he had always known deep inside, even though it had never affected him quite so noticeably. He swallowed, harder than he would've liked.

"If you came here to play that sort of game with me, you might as well leave," he said coldly.

"I don't want to play games," she said, moving to face him. "That's why I'm here. I'm tired of avoiding you and dancing in circles around Naruto so he won't get hurt."

Sasuke gave a snort of contempt. "So you want us to have a heart to heart, is that it? Should we divide the time we spend with him? Do you want odd or even days?"

"Shut up," she spat. "You can have all the time you want with him – you know, to make up for the years you bailed out on your best friend to join a band of criminals."

It hurt more than he would've expected. It hurt because it was the absolute truth. He pressed his lips together.

"I simply don't want to keep myself from talking to him when I need to just because he's with you," she continued.

"Fine with me," Sasuke said with a shrug. "I won't make a scene, if that's what you're afraid of. We might even learn to be civil to each other overtime…"

Sakura glanced down and took a step forward.

"It doesn't have to wait that long," she said, a little breathlessly. "We – we can make a bargain."

The way she said it, and the way she looked at him while she did, made the hairs on Sasuke's arms stand on end. Not only that, but he was also starting to feel a distinctive prickle in the pit of his stomach.

"What sort of bargain?" he asked, frowning.

Sakura walked over to him, her gaze softening somewhat. She was trembling slightly, but she was still on her guard.

"You told me you could give me what I need," she said in a near whisper, reaching out to touch the lapel of his shirt.

Sasuke almost stepped back. "I don't know what I was thinking that night. It was a huge mistake, and I'm sorry if you -"

"I can do the same for you," she added, ignoring his remark.

He grabbed her wrist and pushed her hand away. "I don't need anything, from _anyone_."

"Right – the great Sasuke Uchiha, immune to temptation." A small smile played on her lips. "Do you mean to tell me you didn't touch a single woman, all those years you were gone? Or did that tracking nin with the bite marks you had with you cater to your demands?"

"Sakura…" he warned in a low growl.

She leaned closer, her body almost touching his. "You don't have to pretend around me. It's a little too late for that, don't you think? You might have been drunk the other night… but what I felt through your clothes, that was real enough…"

He violently grabbed her by the waist and squeezed her harshly against him. Sakura gave a little wince.

"And now?"

She wriggled in his arms, but she wasn't trying to break away.

"I'm not afraid of you," she whispered, applying pressure to the right spot.

Sasuke struggled to stifle the moan that was building up in his throat, and when he couldn't hold it back any longer, he muffled it by roughly pressing his lips to hers. Sakura flinched slightly, but met him with equal eagerness.

The sensation was overwhelming. Sasuke felt as if he was drowning, diving down in water so cool and fresh that it almost burned his skin, with only one focal point in mind. They stumbled down on the grass, and he made hasty work of riding her from her top.

It was even better sober, even more irresistible, even harder to keep some measure of self-control. He was plunging down too fast, he needed air. In the dimness of the evening, Sakura's skin looked milky-white, almost luminescent. She threw her head back with a groan as his mouth started to taunt her exposed breasts, and her fingers dug into his hair.

The satisfaction he felt at her reaction was like revenge – it was like killing an enemy you had pursued for a long time. He gripped her thighs, grinding her against him, the need seeping in his veins like a throbbing wound he couldn't contain.

Sakura pulled him down for another kiss, and he felt her hand guide his down the plane of her stomach. The surprise he felt broke him out of his trance for a moment, and he opened his eyes. Sakura was squeezing hers shut, and with a tremor of concern, Sasuke realized she was afraid, if only just a little. His fingers fumbled at the belt of her skirt.

"Wait – are you certain…"

"Please," she murmured. "Sasuke-kun…"

The use of his diminutive, the aching in her voice, it was all like a gust of wind over burning ashes. Sasuke cupped his hand over her, pushing her clothes down awkwardly and wondering how he was to position himself best for what was to come.

It was tight, and burning, and his breath just wouldn't come out straight. Sakura was bucking against him, a hiss of pain or pleasure coming from between her teeth, and he wanted to ask her how, and when, and his hand was blindly trying to free his lower body from his garments, but when she tried to help him, and stroked him just there…

Sasuke dug his forehead against her shoulder, biting his lower lip until he drew blood. A whimper spluttered out of his mouth. He felt dizzy, drained, and rolled back against the cool grass.

Sakura sat up shakily, trying to wipe the wetness away as best she could. Sasuke stole a glance at her as she dressed again. He felt appeased and ashamed, satiated but knowing that the hunger would come back. He covered his face with his hands, feeling like he had cheerfully walked into the biggest trap known to mankind.

But at least they weren't angry anymore. And they would indeed manage not to fight in front of Naruto, if only because the cries and scratches and stares would hit too close to home.

Sakura stood up, raking her hand through her tousled hair.

"We're not to tell anyone," she said, looking down at him. "And especially not Naruto."

Sasuke gave a grunt of agreement and started brushing blades of grass off his pants. She straightened her skirt, then started back towards the path.

"Sakura."

She stopped and turned around. She was strong, and she knew what he wanted… yet for a fleeting moment, there was something in her gaze that reminded him of the little girl he had once known - hopeful and distressed all at once, but above all, madly in love.

He numbed himself against his own thoughts. This had gone far enough.

"Leave your door unlocked tomorrow. It's too messy on the lawn."

She shrugged her shoulders, and it was gone, evaporating under cover of the night as if it had never existed.


	16. The hot springs

A/N: Yes, I'm still alive, and yes, still writing this fic. But terribly sorry for the wait. Enjoy!

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It had come as a surprise to all those passing the jonin exams that they weren't actually taking place in a hidden village. When Naruto had arrived at the gates of Konoha, ready for a rough trek to a far away place where they would have to withstand the elements and fight each other to the finish, he had been momentarily stunned when Kakashi announced that they were going to Ojinshu, a small, pleasant town not far from the border of the Land of Wind.

"It's just an overnight halt, right, sempai?" Naruto asked as they arrived in view of the town, which was nestled between two woody hills.

"No, this is where the exam will take place," Kakashi replied, unperturbed. He was one of the examiners, along with Yamato and a couple other ninjas, Naruto supposed, from different villages.

Naruto couldn't imagine a more unlikely place than Ojinshu to host jonin exams. They had the reputation of being unspeakably difficult, though the actual death rate was low. The most troubling fact, however, was that a significant number of candidates who failed the first time never tried a second time.

"Well, we'll just have to succeed the first time around," Sasuke had said flatly when Naruto shared the disturbing information with him. "Given what both of us have survived through the past few years, I doubt we'll have any trouble with these exams. It's practically just a formality."

Naruto tried to himself that Sasuke was right. If _they_ didn't pass the exams, who would? Yet he simply couldn't share his friend's unyielding confidence, and there was still the shadow of a doubt in his mind as to the outcome of the ordeal.

Now that he was here, though, he felt some of his anxiety melt away. What could possibly go wrong? It was probably just a round of fights like the chunin exams, except that the contestants were more skilled. That he could easily handle.

"This is going to be great," he exclaimed with a grin. "I can't wait to start!"

Kakashi gave him a sideways glance. "I hope you'll manage to hold on to that attitude. You'll need it."

Naruto grinned. "You're just trying to scare me. Reminds me of the first day we spent with you. Doesn't it make you feel old to see the three of us becoming jonin?"

"Yes, thank you for reminding me."

"Honestly, Naruto," Sakura said, rolling her eyes. "You might be on the verge of becoming a jonin, but you're still the same tactless dolt."

Naruto gave her a nudge. He was relieved to see Sakura acting like her old self again – which meant, in her case, that she scolded him whenever she got a chance. She also seemed to have gained some of her aplomb back, and looked fully ready for the exams.

He couldn't fail to notice, however, that her interactions with Sasuke were still strained. They no longer avoided each other's company, but their conversation was limited to conventional niceties, though they always remained civil – almost exceedingly so, as a matter of fact.

He was being too impatient, Naruto reasoned himself as they descended down a gentle slope to the gates of the town. He should be thankful that his friends were on the way to reconciliation. Besides, it was probably best not to rush things – he didn't really know how he would handle his two best friends being involved. He knew he had advised Sasuke to sort things out with her, yet Shikamaru's fearsome testimony of the day he'd walked in on Ino and Choji made him feel ill at ease. What would happen if the same thing happened to him? What if it became so awkward he couldn't even talk to Sasuke about it anymore? Romance just seemed to make things excessively complicated.

Hoping no one would notice, he glanced over his shoulder at Hinata, who was daintily stepping over a patch of mud in the middle of the path, her two teammates by her side. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun and her complexion was less pale than it usually was – probably the result of training outside with Lee. And Kiba, and fuck if he knew who else, for that matter.

Naruto frowned. He wondered if the other guys noticed little changes like he did. He wondered why _he_ noticed them. Somehow it made him feel like he was more entitled than they were to pay attention to her. And he certainly didn't like the idea of anyone else looking at the little drop of sweat rolling down her neck to her…

"Ouch!"

He had stubbed his toe on a small rock and momentarily lost his balance, regaining it at the last minute and stumbling forward on the path.

"I'm starting to think it might be better if we pretend we're not from the same village," Sasuke said.

"Fat chance of that, I'm afraid."

They had arrived at the gates of Ojinshu, and another group of ninjas was about to enter. Naruto studied the plates on their forehead protectors – they were from Kusagaruke, the Hidden Grass Village.

The ninja who had spoken was a tall young man with long, light-brown hair and pale eyes. He was looking at them with a mixture of admiration and suspicion.

"You're Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki of the Leaf," he said. "Two superstars like you won't go unnoticed. The news traveled all the way to our village that you were passing the exams. I'm Jiro Yaguchi."

"Pleasure to meet you too," Sakura snapped, putting her hands on her hips.

Jiro smiled and humbly cast his eyes down. "A thousand excuses if I didn't ask for your name first," he replied. "I'm afraid I get a bit shy around beautiful woman."

"Bullshit," Naruto heard Sasuke murmur next to him. He could already tell he thought the guy was a jerk.

Kakashi and Yamato stepped forward. "Right, this is all very nice," Yamato said, "but we need to get moving and meet with the other examiners. So if you don't mind, you can socialize once we've arrived at the _ryokan_."

"All right, we're staying at an inn," Naruto said as they moved past the group from Kusagaruke. "No sleeping on the ground! This just keeps getting better and better."

"So as long as we're not sharing our commodities with them," Sasuke grumbled.

"Come on, what do you expect? He was sort of right, after all, we are superstars."

"And if your head gets any bigger, you'll bust your hitai-ite," Sakura warned. "That guy could use a crash course in gallantry."

"What are you complaining about?" Sasuke asked. "He told you you were beautiful. Don't girls like that sort of thing?"

Sakura blushed. "You think I'm going to let myself be so easily won over?"

"I don't know anything about that particular subject, and honestly I don't find it very interesting," he answered vaguely.

"Fine. Then don't ask."

Naruto could feel the tension growing, and frantically searched for a way to distract everyone. Not that Ojinshu was a dull town. Lively stalls and rich displays of merchandise were lining both sides of the roads, and the buildings were all topped with brightly colored tiled roofs. The _ryokan_ itself was a charming traditional inn, and he heard Hinata give a little gasp right behind him.

"You'll be staying two nights in the inn," Kakashi told them after they're checked in. "Just long enough for us to check that everything is in place. I suggest you get plenty of rest and relaxation while you can."

"I know how we all could relax after the journey," Naruto said. "Why don't we pop over to the _onsen_?"

"If you go there, I highly recommend the chiatsu massages," Kakashi said, walking away to find his room. "The service is excellent."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "He can't seriously be implying anything by that."

"I'll pass," Kiba said, wrinkling his nose. "No dogs allowed in hot springs, or insects for that matter. Last time Shino and I tried to get in, we caused quite a commotion. We're going to grab a bite. Are you coming, Hinata?"

"Actually, I think it could be fun," Hinata said. "I mean, not the massages," she added quickly. "Just the hot springs, like Naruto said."

She turned towards him and gave him a smile that made his stomach tighten. "Do you want to meet here in half an hour?"

Naruto's mouth went dry and he felt as if his words were rasping on sandpaper. "Yeah, good idea."

"Come on," Sasuke said, nearly dragging him away. "Our rooms are in the north wing."

"Yeah, how old do the examiners think we are, separating us from the kunoichi like that?" Naruto said, regaining his senses. "Do they honestly think we're going to go off sneaking into their rooms in the middle of the night?"

Sasuke was prompt to agree. "Yes, it's completely absurd. No ninja in his right mind would do that when he should be getting some rest."

Naruto nodded, wondering which floor the girls were. "No, you'd have to be completely out of your mind to do that."

"In fact, you had better not come knocking at my door after sundown," his friend said hastily. "I mean, I really want to go to bed early."

"Oh, right. Don't worry about it, if I'm bored I'll just… go bug Kakashi and Yamato."

That didn't sound like much fun – Kakashi might break out the card game again - but at least he would be staying out of trouble.

********************************

The hot springs were only a short walk down the street from the inn, but by the time they got there they noticed other groups of ninjas arriving. There were never more than three or four contestants per village, and Naruto guessed that they would be no more than fifty to pass the exams.

In the lobby of the _onsen_ they met a small band of kunoichi wearing the same symbol on their forehead protectors.

"We're from the Land of Honey," one attractive young woman told them. "In our village, only women can become ninjas."

"That's somewhere I'd like to live," Naruto said with a grin. "Are you all staying at the inn?"

"Yes, we're all in the south wing," another girl said, flipping her reddish hair over her shoulder. "On the fifth floor."

"Oh, that's the floor just above ours," Hinata blurted out, glancing quickly at Naruto.

Sakura gave the girl a sweet smile. "Yes, and I think I saw your sempai coming down the stairs – she looks like a fearsome woman, with those two katanas strapped to her back."

Naruto knew Sakura well enough to sense when danger was approaching, and nudged Sasuke in the direction of the changing area, excusing himself from the group.

"A village of kunoichi, imagine that," he said as they rid themselves of their clothes. "If Shikamaru knew about this, he'd have a fit. Remember how he always used to complain about how boring fights between girls were?"

"Yes, and now he's sleeping with the loudest, most overbearing kunoichi the world has ever seen," Sasuke remarked. "If love is blind, sex must be deaf and mute as well."

Naruto was thoughtful for a moment. They made their way to the hot water pool amidst the tendrils of smoke rising from the surface of the water.

"Sasuke, I have to ask you something," he said as they immersed themselves.

Sasuke leaned his head back into the water, giving a deep sigh. "What is it?"

"You and me – we can talk about anything, right?"

Sasuke frowned. "Why are you asking me that?"

"I mean… I know it's probably none of my business, but if I asked you – if you had any experience with women, for example. You'd tell me, right?"

His friend sat upright to face him, his expression so serious Naruto was taken aback for a moment. "What are you getting at?"

"Nothing in particular, I'm just curious," he replied, wading a little further away. "I know it's stupid, but I thought maybe when you'd had an opportunity, during all those years."

Sasuke looked down at the water. "There's nothing that's worth remembering about that time."

Naruto knew it was in Sasuke's nature to be vague about personal matters, but he couldn't help but press on. "And… what if you had an opportunity now? Would you… you know?"

Sasuke's face was flushed, but Naruto couldn't tell if it was embarrassment or the prolonged effect of the hot water. He opened his mouth to answer, but was cut short when Jiro and the rest of his group made their appearance in the bathing area.

"Oh great, just what we need," Sasuke muttered.

"Come on, let's go to the other pool if you want," Naruto said, swimming towards the edge.

"Uzumaki and Uchiha," Jiro called out. "Come to escape from the crowd?"

"Apparently it's not working very well," Naruto shot back, exasperated, as they left the pool. Where was Sai and his off-putting penis jokes when you needed him?

Jiro simply smiled and rested back on the rocky ledge. "Did that pretty little kunoichi come too?"

Sasuke glared at him. "That pretty little kunoichi, as you say, could smash your ribcage to a pulp in one punch. She was trained by the Hokage herself."

Naruto was momentarily silenced, surprised by his friend's reaction. "Yeah, so don't try anything funny," he finally added, "or you might get hurt."

"That bamboo fence is no match for me," Jiro said, making the rest of his group break out in snickers. "We ninjas from the Grass Village have control over plants – are you sure you don't want to take a peek?"

Naruto stepped back against the fence, as if to prevent Jiro from carrying out his plan. _If only Jiraiya could see me now_, he thought. _Protecting women's modesty… _From the other side of the fence, he could hear gentle chatter and pleasant laughs.

"No, I don't want to take a peek!" he cried. "What sort of man do you think I am?"

The laughter stopped all of sudden, then burst anew. Naruto cringed as he realized the women had heard him.

"Naruto, is that you?" an angry voice said on the other side of the fence. "When are you going to learn your lesson, you pervert?"

"Sakura-chan, I was trying to protect you!" he said, scrambling towards the nearest pool as Jiro and his friends mocked him from a distance. "That guy from the Grass Village wanted to use a jutsu on the fence."

"Calm down, Sakura, I'm sure he's telling the truth," said a softer voice. "Aren't you, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto gave a breath of relief and sank down in the water. "Thanks, Hinata."

"I know you're not like that."

Her words made him feel almost guilty. True, his intentions had been honorable, but his mind wasn't always pure of unmentionable thoughts, far from it. Sasuke was looking equally skeptical.

"Are you going to re-establish the truth in that matter?" he asked dryly.

"Bugger off," Naruto hissed, waving him away to the other side of the pool.

"Naruto-kun… are you still there?"

It was odd, talking to Hinata when he couldn't see her, but it was also far less difficult. She was always so graceful and delicate, he felt like any word might be a blunder in her ears. Except when he was drunk, of course.

"You know, Hinata… Sakura's right, in a way. I do act like a complete idiot sometimes, simply because I don't know any better, and I don't take time to think."

"That's not true. You're just a little… impulsive. But that's not a bad thing."

Naruto closed his eyes, willing his heart to remain calm. "What I told you the other night, though… It wasn't just an impulse. I think about it all the time."

He stared at the fence, waiting for a reply, but there was nothing but silence. For a moment, he feared Hinata had left. Yet somehow he could still sense her presence there – he could almost hear her breathing.

Naruto waited, the blood thumping abruptly through his veins and giving him a strange sense of breathlessness. His senses were sharpened and focused entirely on the fence, and what it was hiding from his view. There was a small splash, as if Hinata had moved within the pool, and the awareness of her body, so close to his, made his head spin.

"I wish I could see you."

Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it might as well have been a scream. Naruto swallowed hard.

"And I wish you could see me."

"See you?" he repeated, trembling. "See you now?"

"Yes." She hesitated, but just for a second. "Now. In the water."

His desire to tear down the fence was so strong he thought it might crumble from his sheer will alone.

"Tell her to use the Byakugan."

Naruto sat up and instinctively covered himself with his hands, as if someone had just walked in on him in a moment of intimacy. Sasuke seemed unfazed by his reaction.

"What the fuck, you moron?"

"Naruto-kun, are you all right?"

"Sorry, Hinata, I have to… I'll see you back at the inn." He rose from the pool, furious and mortified. "Right now I'm going to kill my so-called friend."

Sasuke shrugged. "I've had enough of the hot springs. Let's go."

"And that's why you interrupted me?" Naruto cried as they made their way back to the changing area.

"That, and because you were about to send some clones to scale that goddamn fence. One more minute and the temptation would have been too great."

"Temptation?" Naruto yelled. "What do you know about temptation? You've got all the passion and ardor of a monk!"

"I used the Sharingan on Sakura, in case you've forgotten," Sasuke snapped, turning around to face him. "And I did because she was driving me crazy, and I couldn't control myself!"

The two of them remained silent for a moment, regaining their cool. Sasuke took a deep breath and started putting his clothes back on.

"Believe me, I understand how difficult it is to stay reasoned in such a situation. The best we can do is look out for each other when it's possible."

"And when it's not?" Naruto asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "Then what do we do?"

Sasuke twisted his mouth into a small smirk. There was something in his eyes that Naruto had never seen before – something softer and more animated all at once.

"What happens behind closed doors stays behind closed doors – even for ninjas."


	17. The march

Has it really been since October? *cringe* But, as you see, I am going to complete this story, and I promise I'll finish it before Kishi finishes the manga (that shouldn't be too hard, right?) Enjoy and thank you all for the heart-warming reviews.

* * *

Sakura sat on the edge of the tatami and reached for her clothes, careful to make as little noise as possible. Not only did she want to avoid waking up anyone in the adjacent rooms, but Sasuke was sleeping as well. She wasn't sure how to proceed, faced with this situation, and it seemed for the better to slip away before he woke from his light slumber.

It was the first time that she had actually spent the entire night with him. The few times they had been together since the evening on the training grounds had always ended quite quickly – one might almost say abruptly, Sakura thought. They both pretended to have somewhere else to be, or something else to do, to avoid any sort of talk that might get in the way of their arrangement.

Tonight had been different, though. They had started with their usual struggle – rushed, uncompromising, and so electrifying that the release came like a punch in the gut. But then as Sakura had stood from the bed, her forehead slick with sweat and her cheeks blazing, Sasuke had pulled her down to him again. He hadn't had enough, yet this time he went more slowly, indulging in every movement, his body sliding against hers with agonizing persistence.

They hadn't stopped until he was exhausted and she was sore and completely drained of energy. Then he'd let himself fall back on the pillow, and had drifted off to sleep.

She looked back at him over her shoulder. Once again, the sight of his face, so peaceful and blank, troubled her. He looked like the young boy she used to know. He looked like what that young boy would be now if he hadn't decided to leave. And yet… it wouldn't really have been Sasuke if he'd simply sat on his hands and waited for the storm to pass. That choice was part of who he was. And she loved him, unbearably so, in spite of it.

She put her nightshirt back on and glanced out the window. The clouds were tinged with pink. She groaned at the thought of all the precious sleep she'd missed. They were leaving the inn today and she wouldn't get a chance to squeeze in some rest today. Perhaps one or two hours before everyone else woke up…

"Are you leaving?"

Sakura turned to see Sasuke looking at her. It was if he hadn't been asleep at all.

"It's almost morning. I have to go back to my room."

"You'll be even more tired if you go sleep now," he said blankly. "You should stay awake and get on with the day."

"Maybe I will. But I still have to go."

He took her wrist and tried to draw her back in bed, but she wrenched herself free. "Stop that."

His lips curled in a slight smirk. "I didn't know you were in such a hurry to get away from me. That's not the impression I got when you asked me to -"

"I'm going now," she snapped, blushing. "Anyway, what do you care if I'm in a hurry or not? You got what you wanted, right?"

"Not quite."

His arm snaked around her waist and she felt his lips brush the nape of her neck enticingly. The familiar tug built up inside of her, defying her exhaustion. He was right, it would be silly to go to bed now... All she had to do was let him do what he wanted and…

"I said, stop that!"

Shaking her thoughts away, Sakura rose from the tatami and headed towards the door. Sasuke sat up straight, giving a small grunt.

"Fine. Go on, then. Tonight will come soon enough."

"You seriously expect me to come warm your sleeping bag in front of everyone? As far as I'm concerned, this – whatever it is – in on hold until we finish the exams. Or better yet, _indefinitely_."

"Whatever you say," he replied nonchalantly. "Don't expect me to believe you, though."

She felt a burst of fury at his words. "Because you think no one could ever replace you, is that it? Wake up, Sasuke. This is nothing else here but sex."

He glared at her. "You're lying, Sakura."

"And what if I am? It's all the same to you. And to be honest, I'm done with caring myself."

She opened the door without another glance at him and bolted out in the corridor, overcome with the urge to punch something. Now she remembered why they avoided talking at all costs – he made her so mad she could hardly see straight. How dare he demand so much of her, without giving anything in return?

But she was also furious against herself. It was her own fault if she had gotten herself into this mess. She hadn't been able to control her desire for him, nor her feelings. And worst of all, she hadn't been able to crush that last smudge of hope that he would finally reciprocate them. She had thought she would be strong enough to handle him, and she had been terribly wrong.

As soon as she was in her own room, Sakura sat on her tatami, confused and weary. She needed to clear her thoughts before the exam or it would be a disaster. Closing her eyes, she tried to focus her mind on Tsunade, and the advice she had given her over the years. Then her thoughts inexplicably switched to Kakashi. Her two sensei, though they were both powerful ninjas, had very little in common. Yet there was something they shared, something important – they kept their heads cool in the face of danger and their thoughts collected.

How did one manage to achieve this? Try as she might, this was always something that gave her great difficulty. And now Sasuke was showing her just how much she failed to stay calm in a difficult situation…

She'd have to go talk to him, she decided, closing her eyes. She would act adult and tell him there was no need for all this anger between them… They could hold each other in mutual respect, if nothing else…

The sound of footsteps outside her door woke Sakura with a jolt. It felt as if she had been asleep for no longer than five minutes, but her room was now fully lit by the morning sun.

"Oh crap, I must be late…"

She scrambled up, her head heavy and aching. But there was no time to dwell on that. Everyone was getting ready to leave.

* * *

"I hope all of you have had a good night's sleep."

Sakura nearly groaned at the irony of Yamato's words, but kept her mouth shut. She and Hinata were standing a little further away from Naruto and Sasuke. Naruto wouldn't have looked any more impatient if Yamato had been announcing the start of a ramen-eating contest.

The entire group of contestants had been gathered at the border of a forest adjacent to the town. The trees were rather sparse and lean, and the sunlight filtered through the bristling leaves. In fact, it looked more like a forest where one would take a nice pleasant walk on a day off than the dark, dense woods full of wild things they had been left in for their chunin exams. The only unusual thing, Sakura noted, was the tall red wooden portal at the edge of the trees. She wondered if a temple had once stood there.

"You will be split up into four groups, departing every half hour. One person in the group will be given a map that will guide to your final destination. This destination must be reached within three days, or you will not be able to pass the second stage of the exam."

"Does it matter which group arrives first?" someone asked.

"No. And before you ask, the person holding the map has absolutely no interest in leaving the rest of the group behind. It will not be easier for him or her to reach the destination, nor will it guarantee any sort of success during the second stage. In fact, you might find it will be quite the opposite."

Another ninja spoke up. "You mean we're not competing against each other at all?"

A murmur of surprise and disapproval rippled through the crowd.

Yamato simply smiled. "No. But do not underestimate the task at hand – these are jonin exams, after all, and a great many of you will fail."

Sakura tightened her gloved fists. She would not be one of these, no matter what it took. To her right, Naruto was starting to look a bit dejected that there would be no fight, at least not in the first phase. Sasuke was still and concentrated, as usual.

"If anyone wishes to forfeit, he or she need only voice their wish out loud, and measures will be taken for their evacuation."

This was getting more and more puzzling. How would the instructors know where they were? And how could they reach them on time, if they were three days' walk away?

"As soon as you pass the portal, consider the exam as started. Good luck to everyone."

Sakura watched carefully as the members of the first group were called and started walking into the forest. Nothing out of the ordinary happened as they passed the portal, and she was slightly relieved. It didn't manage to fully reassure her, however.

"Second group," a female instructor called. "Konohagakure, Kusagakure and Moyagakure."

Sakura shared a glance with Hinata and they both joined the dozen or so ninjas that were waiting to leave.

"Here's your map," the instructor said, handing it to Jiro Yaguchi, the young man from Grass whom they had met at the entrance of the village. "Second group, you may go."

Sakura took a deep breath and followed Jiro's lead into the forest.

* * *

After an hour or so of walking, Sakura still didn't notice anything out of the ordinary amongst the trees. She had been expecting an attack or a trap, but she supposed the examinors wanted them to go further into the forest before putting them into the test.

The ninjas made their way on the small dirt path in silence, on their guards. Since there was nothing in particular to look at around them, Sakura started to observe the people around her. Naruto was walking next to her, and his expression was still, but tense. As for Sasuke, she could tell he was on edge simply by the way he was walking, a little further in front of her.

"Are we sure this is the right way?" Naruto asked all of a sudden, breaking the silence.

Jiro stopped and threw him a cold glance over his shoulder. "There's only one path. What other way would there be?"

"Let's see the map," Sasuke said.

Jiro hesitated, but confronted with Sasuke's impassive glare, he relented. Sakura craned her neck to see the map. It was a schematic plan of the forest, with one steady line linking the red gate to an opening marked with a cross.

"So that's our destination…" Hinata murmured.

Naruto shook his head. "This looks too easy. There must be a catch somewhere."

"I agree," a girl from Moyagakure, the Hidden Haze Village, said. "I think we should stop for a moment and talk it over."

Jiro grabbed the map back. "What, and lose time? This isn't an orientation test. We're bound to get ambushed along the way by dangerous enemies."

Sakura bit her lip. "I hate to say it, but Jiro's probably right. We should get moving."

"Well, if you think so…" Sasuke muttered, refusing to meet her eye.

Naruto crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I don't see why we should do anything until everyone agrees."

"How about I make you agree?" one of Jiro's companions replied, waving a fist in front of his face.

"Stop it!" Hinata cried. "This isn't getting us anywhere. Let's just move on until we have a good reason to do otherwise."

The group reluctantly started again. Sakura watched with interest as Naruto stayed solidly into place, looking at them with a stubborn pout.

Hinata tugged on his arm, gently but firmly. "Come on, Naruto. Save your energy for when you'll really need it. You know we won't go anywhere without you."

He seemed mollified for a moment, then finally gave a big shrug and followed her. Sakura smiled, then her gaze landed on Sasuke. He was watching the scene as well, but it was impossible to guess what he was thinking.

For a while, the march continued as before, uneventfully. Sakura had let her thoughts drift away when she stumbled into the person in front of her, who had stopped dead. Jiro had halted suddenly, and was peering at the map in confusion.

Sakura quickly saw why. They were at a crossroad, with another path crossing the first one diagonally.

"This path wasn't on the map," Jiro said.

Naruto snorted. "So? Let's just keep going forward, like we decided."

"He said it _wasn't_," Sasuke pointed out. "But it is now."

Indeed, the diagonal path was inked on the paper, just like the first, and it too was linked to a cross.

"How is this possible? Why are there two different destinations?" a ninja from the Haze asked.

Sakura could sense the tension growing, and tried to keep her head cool. "It's obvious we're caught in some sort of genjustu."

"The path could be an illusion," Hinata said. "_Byakugan_!"

She observed the surroundings for a moment, but frowned in confusion as her eyes went back to normal. "Not a trace of chakra anywhere. Genjustu requires huge amounts of chakra, especially if you're going to put a dozen people under the same spell."

"This is all your fault!" Naruto shouted at Jiro. "I told you we should have stopped and taken a decision together!"

The arguments started again and quickly escaladed into a fight between a ninja from the Grass and another from the Haze. Once they were separated, the group came to the shaky decision to keep going along the same path as before.

"I just don't understand how we're supposed to figure out which path will take us to the right destination," Sakura told Hinata in a low voice. "There aren't any indications we can use, and our skills are useless."

"Perhaps if we could have a general view of the forest? Sai's ability would really come in handy here…"

"Good idea!" Naruto exclaimed. "No need for a giant bird, I'll go check it out myself!"

He leaped on the branch of the nearest tree, quickly climbing to the top, then creating a chain of clones to get a better view beyond the canopy. When he finally came down, Sakura saw at once that something was wrong.

"Naruto, was is it?" Hinata asked anxiously.

"I – I can't believe it. I didn't see anything but the forest – for miles and miles all around, right to the horizon. There's nothing else. It's like we're the middle of a sea of trees."

"But… that's impossible!"

Sakura's throat tightened. The sun still filtered through the trees, but the forest itself, she now noticed, was absolutely silent – not the rustle of a leaf or the chirp of a bird. And for the first time since they left, she understood that the danger they were facing, although invisible to their eyes, was as terrible as all the enemies she had fought before.


End file.
